William J?. 8m 
U. S* Botanic Garden, 
LIF*ABC 



OP 



REAR-ADMIRAL 



JOHN PAUL JONES, 

CHEVALIER OP THE MILITARY ORDER OF MERIT, AND OF THE 
RUSSIAN ORDER OF ST. ANNE, Sec. fcc 



COMPILED FROM HIS ORIGINAL JOURNALS AND CORRESPONDENCE: INCLUDING AN ACCOUNT i 
HIS SERVICES IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, AND IN THE WAR BETWEEN 
IUE RUSSIANS AND TURKS IN THE BLACK SEA. 



ILLUSTRATED WITH NUMEROUS ENGRAVINGS, 
From Original Drawings 

BY JAMES HAMILTON. 



PHILADELPHIA: 
J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO 

1867. 



07 

T 






Entered according to the Act of Congress, n the year 1845- tor 
BENJ. WALKER, 

in ttw office of the clerk of the District Court of the United Slates h. and tor 
Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 






PREFACE. 



The following Life of Rear- Admiral Paul Jones, is formea 
on the basis of the Edinburgh " Memoirs," published under 
the sanction of his family connexions. Some alterations and 
additions have been made by the American editor, and all 
the naval embellishments are from original drawings, by Mr. 
Hamilton, the portraits by Mr. Croome and others. 

The following extract from the Preface to the Edinburgh 
" Memoirs," will show the sources from which this biography 
has been compiled. So much of the work was written by 
Jones's own hand, that the American editor has felt reluctant 
to make changes. 

The papers from which the present work is compiled may 
now be enumerated : — it is, however, in the first place, worth)'' 
of notice, that though Paul Jones acted a prominent part in 
the American war, a very small portion of his public life 
was spent in America. His field of enterprise was Europe. 



iv PREFACE. 

Though he had made two visits to the United States be 
tvveen the years 1780 and 1792, when he died in Paris, he 
spent -but a short time in America, and that in comparative 
inactivity. 

By his will, dated at Paris on the day of his death, Paul 
Jones left his property and effects of all kinds to his sisters in 
Scotland and their children. Immediately on his decease a 
regular, or rather an official inventory was made of his volu- 
minous papers, which were sealed up with his other effects, 
till brought to Scotland by his eldest sister, Mrs. Taylor, a 
few months after his death. They have ever since remained 
in the custody of his family ; and are now, by inheritance, 
become the property of his niece, Miss Taylor of Dumfries. 
They consist of several bound folio volumes of letters and 
documents, which are officially authenticated, so far as they 
are public papers; numerous scrolls and copies of letters; 
and many private communications, originating in his widely- 
diffused correspondence in France, Holland, America, and 
other quarters. There is, in addition to these, a collection of 
writings of the miscellaneous kind likely to be accumulated 
by a man of active habits, who had for many years mingled 
both in the political and fashionable circles, wherever he 
chanced to be thrown. 

The Journal of the Campaign of 1788 against the Turks, 
forms of itself a thick MS. bound volume. This Journal was 
drawn up by Paul Jones for the perusal of the Empress 



PREFACE. V 

Catherine II.; and was intended for publication if the Russian 
government failed to do him justice. He felt that it tota^, 
failed ; but death anticipated his long-contemplated purpose. 
To this Journal, Mr. Eton, in his Survey of the Turkish Em- 
pire, refers, as having been seen by him. It was, however 
only the official report, transmitted by Paul Jones to the Ad- 
miralty of the Black Sea, that this gentleman could have 
seen. This singular narrative, which so confidently gives 
the lie to all the Russian statements of that momentous cam- 
paign, is written in French. In the following work the 
language of the original is as closely adhered to as is ad- 
missible even in the most literal translation. Several pas- 
sages have been omitted, and others curtailed, as they 
refer merely to technical details, which might have unduly 
swelled this work, without adding much to its interest. Much 
of the voluminous official correspondence which passed be- 
tween Paul Jones and the other commanders during the cam- 
paign is also omitted. These pieces justijicatives were only 
intended to corroborate, or elucidate, the narrative; they 
are, save in a few instances which are cited, not particularly 
interesting. 

Besides the above papers and documents, the editor has 
been furnished with the letters written by Paul Jones to his 
relations in Scotland, frcm the time that he was a ship-boy 
at Whitehaven till he died an Admiral in the Russian service, 
i.nd the wearer of several Orders. From these materials an 



vi PREFACE. 

attempt has been made to exhibit, for the first time, the real 
character of this remarkable and distinguished individual, 
fairly, but liberally,— keeping clear of hyperbole and exag- 
geration on the one hand, and of prejudice and misrepresen- 
tation on the other. Of each of these, the reputation, and 
true character of Paul Jones, have long been the alternate 
sport or victim. 




CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

PAGE 

Early Life of Paul Jones. Goes to Sea. Settles in Virginia 11 

CHAPTER II. 

Commencement of the Revolution. Jones enters the Naval service of the 
United States. Expedition to Providence under Commodore Hopkins. 
Expedition to Newfoundland. Organization of the Navy. Intercourse 
with Congress. Jones goes to Europe in the Ranger 22 

CHAPTER III. 

In Paris. Plan of Naval Campaign. Goes to Quiberon, Obtains the first 
Salute. Cruise on the British coast. Capture of the Drake. Letter to 
Lady Selkirk. Correspondence with Lord Selkirk . . . 49 

CHAPTER IV. 

Jones in France. Prisoners and Prize Agents. New plans. Correspon- 
dence with Dr. Franklin and the Commissioners and the French Minis- 
ters. Letter to the King of France 76 

CHAPTER V. 

Jones declines the Privateer service. The Bon Homme Richard and a 
Squadron placed under his command. Sails on a Cruise. The Cruise. 
Operations on the British coast 101 

CHAPTER VI. 

Engagement of the Bon Homme Richard and Serapis. Capture of the 
Serapis. Transactions at the Texel and L'Orient 120 



tffl CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER VII. 

Jones at Versailles. The gold Sword. Order of Merit. Landais and 
Arthur Lee. Mutiny. Refitting of the Scrapis. Sailing of the Alliance. 
Sailing of the Ariel. Ariel dismasted. Jones and Delia. M. de Sar- 
tine's letter to the President 156 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Jones in the United States. His Narrative of the Voyage. Trial and dis- 
missal of Landais. Complimentary report of the American Board of 
Admiralty. Thanks of Congress. Letter from Washington. Appointed 
to the command of the America. Disappointed. Return of peace. Jones 
goes to Paris. Returns to America. Receives gold medal from Con- 
gress. Returns to Europe. Enters the Russian service. Goes to St. 
Petersburgh 175 

CHAPTER IX. 
Jones's Journal of his Campaign in the Liman 214 

CHAPTER X. 

State of affairs in Russia. Character of Prince Potemkin 287 

CHAPTER XL 

Jones returns to St. Petersburgh. Unpleasant affair. Leaves Russia. Cor- 
respondence 301 

CHAPTER XII. 
Jones and Kosciusko. Correspondence 325 

CHAPTER XIII. 

Jones's domestic and literary character. Correspondence with Ladies 
Residence m Paris. Death. Will. Character 351 

Appendix 397 



LIST OF EMBELLISHMENTS. 



PORTRAIT OF PAUL JONES. FRONTISPIECE. 

TITLE PAGE. MEDALLION FROM THE CONGRESS MEDAL. 

TAIL PIECE Page 6 

INITIAL LETTER 11 

TAIL PIECE 21 

INITIAL LETTER 22 

HOISTING THE AMERICAN FLAG 28 

SAILING OF JONES'S SQUADRON 30 

ESCAPE FROM THE SOLEBAY 34 " 

ACTION WITH THE MILFORD 34 

WRECK OF THE HAMPDEN 35 

DESTRUCTION OF THE TRANSPORT 37 

TAILPIECE 43 n 

INITIAL LETTER 49 

THE FIRST SALUTE 52 

SINKING OF THE BRIGANTINE 54 

ESCAPE OF THE REVENUE WHERRY 55 

EXPEDITION TO WHITEHAVEN 57 f£ 

DESCENT ON WHITEHAVEN 60 " 

DESCENT ON ST. MARY'S ISLE 62 " 

ACTION BETWEEN THE RANGER AND THE DRAKE 64 

RELEASE OF THE IRISHMEN 66 

TAIL PIECE 75 

INITIAL LETTER 76 

TAIL PIECE .... 100 ^ 

INITIAL LETTER 101 

PORTRAIT— LA FAYETTE 104 " 

STORM OFF THE COAST OF SCOTLAND 113 v 

ADVENTURE ON THE COAST OF FIFE 117^ 

TAIL PIECE 110 

INITIAL LETTER 120 

MEETING OF THE FLEETS 121 

ADVENTURE OFF THE HUMBER 122 

THE RICHARD AND SERAPIS. Beginning of the action 124 

THE RICHARD AND SERAPIS. Close action 125 

ACTION BETWEEN THE RICHARD AND SERAPIS 128 

SINKING OF THE BON HOMME RICHARD . % 131 

PORTRAIT— COMMODORE DALE 133 

PORTRAIT— ROBERT MORRIS 151 

ESCAPE OF THE ALLIANCE 153 



x LIST OF EMBELLISHMENTS. 

TAIL PIECE 155 

INITIAL LETTER 156 J 

PORTRAIT— SILAS DEANE 1 69 " 

THE ARIEL RIDING OUT THE STORM 170 

TAILPIECE 174 

INITIAL LETTER 175 

VICTORY OF THE ARIEL 177 

PORTRAIT— JOHN ADAMS 192 

PORTRAIT— THOMAS JEFFERSON 200 ' 

TAIL PIECE 213 ^ 

INITIAL LETTER 214 

CROSSING THE BALTIC 219 

GOING ON BOARD THE WOLODIMER 221 

JONES HOISTS HIS FLAG ON BOARD THE WOLODIMER 223 

AFFAIR OF JUNE 6th 227 J 

COMBAT WITH THE TURKS 229 J 

ACTION BETWEEN THE TURKS AND RUSSIAN SQUADRON.. . 232 

BURNING OF THE TURKISH VESSELS 234 

JONES TAKING SOUNDINGS OFF OCZAKOW 235 

ATTACK ON THE SHIPS AGROUND 237 

BURNING OF THE TURKISH FLEET 239 

FLOTILLA ACTION 240 

BURNING OF A FRIGATE 241 

BURNING OF THE CAPITAN PACHA'S GALLEY 243* 

ACTION OF THE 28th OF JUNE 243 

CAPTURE OF THE TURKISH CHALOUPES 249 

JONES CUTTING OUT A TURKISH VESSEL 2.33 

THE CAPITAN PACHA SOUNDING 255 l 

CAPTURE OF THE LODKA 257 

RUSSIAN ATTACK ON OCZAKOW 263 

FLOTILLA ACTION 265 

JONES'S NIGHT EXPEDITION 267 

' BURNING OF A TURKISH VESSEL 268 

TAIL PIECE 286 

INITIAL LETTER 287 

INITIAL LETTER 301 

PORTRAIT— CATHERINE II 310 

TAIL PIECE 324 

INITIAL LETTER 325 

PORTRAIT-KOSCIUSKO 326 

PORTRAIT— WASHINGTON 330 

TAILPIECE 350 V 

INITIAL LETTER 351 

TAIL PIECE 396 

TAII PIECE— JONES SAVING THE BOATS 399 



LIFE 



OP 



COMMODORE JOHN PAUL JONES. 



CHAPTER I. 



- — ^zr^ ^^^^ 0HN PAUL J0NES wa * 

~ ZSSp5 WlBl|l WmfL at Arbigland, in the parish of 

wards assumed, — kept a public, or as it was then called, a 
mail-garden in Leith, on a spot long since covered with 
buildings. His son, the father of John Paul Jones, followed 
the same profession; and, on finishing his apprenticeship, 
entered into the employment of Mr. Craik of Arbigland, in 
which he remained till his death, in 1767. 

A gardener at that period was understood to be a person 
of better education than a common operative mechanic in 
ordinary handicrafts. The father of Paul Jones must have 
been a man both of intelligence and worth. The garden of 

(11) 



18 EARLY LIFE. 

Arbigland was laid out by him ; and he planted the trees thai 
now embellish the mansion. The period of his service, and 
the interest which his employer took in his orphan family, 
established the general w r orth and respectability of his 
character. 

Shortly after entering into the employment of Mr. Craik, 
John Paul married Jean Macduff, the daughter of a small 
farmer in the neighbouring parish of New- Abl >y. The Mac- 
duffs were a respectable rural race in their own district ; 
and some of them had been small landed proprietors in the 
parish of Kirkbean, for an immemorial period. Of this mar- 
riage there were seven children, of whom John — afterwards 
known as John Paul Jones — was the fifth : he may indeed be 
called the youngest, as tw T o children born afier him died in 
infancy.* The first-born of the family, William Paul, went 
abroad early in life, and finally settled and married in I red- 
ericksburgh, in Virginia. He appears to have been a man 
of enterprise and judgment. Beyond his early education and 
virtuous habits he could have derived no advantage from his 
family; and, in 1772 or 1773, when he died, still a young 
man, he left a considerable fortune. Of the daughters, the 
eldest, Elizabeth, died unmarried, — Janet, the second, married 
Mr. Taylor, a watchmaker in Dumfries, — and the third, 
Mary Ann, was twice married, first to a Mr. Young, and 
afterwards to Mr. Louden. Of the relations of Admiral 
Tones, several nieces, and a grand-nephew, now in the 
United States, still survive. 



* Among the many calumnies by which the memory of Admiral Paul 
Jones has been loaded, and the numerous vulgar traditions that hang about 
his reputation, and conceal his genuine character, is an absurd story of his 
having been the son of either Mr. Craik, his father's employer, of one of the 
Kurls of Selkirk, or of some other great personage, name unknown; as i it 
were impossible that a man so distinguished by gallantry and enterprise, 
could be, in very deed, merely the fifth child of Mr. John Paul, the gardener. 
HiR corresnondence in the farther progress of his narrative will snflicientlv 
refute an oosolete slander which was perhaps scarcely worth notice. 



APPRENTICESHIP. 13 

The residence of his father, near the shores of the Solway, 
in one of the most beautiful points of the Frith, must have 
been favourable to the genius of one who was destined to 
play the part of John Paul Jones — to have, — 

" His march upon the mountain wave, 
His home upon the deep." 

In the traditions of his family, young Paul is described as 
launching, while a mere child, his mimic-ship, hoisting his 
flag, and issuing his mandates to his imaginary crew with all 
the firmness and dignity of one born to lead and to command 
his fellows. 

Among the numerous unfounded slanders and rumours of 
which this brave and misrepresented man has been the 
object, is the assertion, that he ran off to sea against the will 
of his relations. Even this transgression might have been 
atoned by his after life; but it was not committed. His 
inclination for the bold and hardy mode of life which he 
adopted, appears, as it often does in boyhood, to have been 
a strong passion, fostered by his childish pastimes, and en- 
couraged by much that he saw and heard in his daily inter- 
course with ships and seamen. Man or boy, Paul Jones was 
not moulded in the stamp of character which shrinks from 
facing out what is once firmly resolved. A sailor's life was 
his decided choice ; and at the age of twelve he was sent 
across the Solway by his relations, and bound apprentice to 
Mr. Younger, of Whitehaven. This gentleman, who was 
then a respectable merchant in the American trade, he found 
a kind and liberal master. 

Though Paul Jones was thus early estranged from nis 
family, and was afterwards prevented from much personal 
intercourse with them, this narrative will afford abundant 
evidence that, like almost every other young Scottish adven- 
turer — to the national honour be it told — he continued a most 
a ffectionate son and brother, even when at the highest eleva- 



14 FIRST VOYAGE. 

lion of his fortune ; giving constant proof, not merely of his 
readiness to minister to the comforts of his relations, but of 
his anxiety for the union, respectability, and prosperity of his 
sisters and their families. — To them he at last bequeathed 
the whole of his fortune. 

The education which young Paul received at the parish- 
school of Kirkbean, must have terminated when he went to 
sea. His after acquirements — and they were considerable — 
were the fruits of private study, and of such casual oppor- 
tunities as in boyhood he had the forethought and good sense 
to improve as often as his ship came into port. His first 
voyage was made to America, the country of his after adop- 
tion. He sailed in the Friendship, of Whitehaven ; and, before 
he was thirteen, landed on the shores of Rappahannock. 
While the Friendship remained in port, young Paul lived in 
the house of his brother William, and assiduously studied 
navigation and other branches of learning, either connected 
with his profession or of general utility. 

In the course of a short time, his good conduct, intelligence, 
and knowledge of his profession, procured him the confidence 
and friendship of his master, who promised him his future 
protection and favour. From the subsequent embarrassment 
of his own affairs, Mr. Younger was unable to fulfil this 
promise ; but, in giving the young seaman up his indentures, 
he did all he could then perform. Thus honourably released 
from his early engagements, Paul Jones, while still a mere 
boy, obtained the appointment of third mate of the King 
George of Whitehaven, a vessel engaged in the slave-trade. 
From this ship he went about the year 1766, being now nine- 
teen years of age, into the brigantine Two Friends, of King- 
ston, Jamaica, as chief mate. This ship was engaged in the 
same nefarious traffic. It is stated by his relatives, the only 
source of information on the early period of his life that is 
either accessible or to be relied on, that he quitted this 
abominable trade in disgust at its enormities ; and, in conse- 



APPOINTED MASTER. 15 

quence of abandoning it, returned to Scotland in 1768, as a 
passenger in the brigantine John of Kirkcudbright, Captain 
Macadam, commander. On this voyage the captain and 
ma te both died of fever ; and there being no one on board so 
capable of navigating the ship, Paul assumed the command, 
and brought her safe into port. For this well-timed piece 
of service he was appointed by the owners, Currie, Beck, 
& Co., master and supercargo. This was almost the last 
time that young Paul had an opportunity of seeing his re- 
lations. He only met them once again, about the middle of 
the year 1771. 

While Paul Jones was on board this vessel, a circumstance 
occurred which afterwards, in times of violent prejudice and 
party-feeling, was eagerly laid hold of to traduce and blacken 
his character, and to represent him as a cruel and lawless 
brigand, eager for plunder and thirsting for blood,* guilty of 
a thousand enormities, though of what precise kind no one 
could specify. It was confidently stated — and is still indeed 
very generally believed — that while in the command of the 
John he punished a man named Mungo Maxwell, the carpen- 
ter of that vessel, so severely, that he died in consequence of 
the stripes he received. The affidavits! given below clearly 

* It is not a little remarkable, that many of his own intelligent countrymen 

do to this day know of Paul Jones only as a wild reckless adventurer, a sort of 

modern buccaneer, possessed of no redeeming quality save great personal com- 

age and intrepidity,— or as the subject of vulgar ballads and marvellous legends, 

daring impossible and acting horrible deeds, among which was the one above 

alluded to. m , 

" Tobago. 

t " Before the Honourable Lieutenant-Governor, William Young, Esq., ot 
the island aforesaid, personally appeared James Simpson, Esq., who, being 
duly sworn upon the Holy Evangelists of Almighty God, deposeth and saith, 
That some time about the beginning of May, in the year of our Lord one 
thousand seven hundred and seventy, a person in the habit of a sailor came to 
this deponent (who was at that time Judge Surrogate of the Court of Vice- 
Admiralty for the island aforesaid) with a complaint against John Paul, (com 
mander of a brigantine then lying in Rockley Bay of the said island,) for 



16 CALUMNY. 

refute this calumny, which probably originated among those 
of his contemporaries who envied the place and influence his 
superior intelligence and energy had so earry acquired for 
him. So tenacious of life is slander, however false and 

having beat the then complainant, (who belonged to the said John Paul's ves- 
sel,) at the same time showing this deponent his shoulders, which had theieon 
the marks of several stripes, but none that were either mortal or dangerous, to 
the best of this deponent's opinion and belief. And this deponent further saith, 
that he did sununon the said John Paul before him, who, in his vindication, 
alleged tiiat the said complainant had on all occasions proved very ill qualified 
for, as well as very negligent in, his duty; and also, that he was very lazy and 
inactive in the execution of his (the said Jolin Paul's) lawful commands, at the 
same time declaring his sorrow for having corrected the complainant. And 
this deponent further saith, that having dismissed the complaint as frivolous, 
the complainant, as this deponent believes, returned to his duty. And this 
deponent further saith, that he has since understood that the said complainant 
died afterwards on board of a different vessel, on her passage to some of the 
Leeward Islands, and that the said John Paul (as this deponent is informed) 
has been accused in Great Britain as the immediateauthor of the said com- 
plainant's death, by means of the said stripes herein before mentioned, which 
accusation this deponent, for the sake of justice and humanity, in the most 
solemn manner declares, and believes to be, in his judgment, without any just 
foundation, so far as relates to the stripes before mentioned, which this depo- 
nent very particularly examined. And further this deponent saith not. 

"James Simpson 
"Sworn before me, this 30th day of 
June, 1772, William Young." 

"James Eastment, mariner, and late master of the Barcelona packet, makcth 
oath, and saith, That Mungo Maxwell, carpenter, formerly on board the John, 
Captain John Paul, master, came in good health on board his, this deponent's 
said vessel, then lying in Great Rockley Bay, in the island of Tobago, about 
the middle of the month of June, in the year one thousand seven hundred and 
seventy, in the capacity of a carpenter, aforesaid; that he acted as such m 
every respect in perfect health for some days after he came on board this depo- 
nent's said vessel, the Barcelona packet; after which he was taken ill of a 
fever and lowness of spirits, which continued for four or five da}-s ( when he 
dird on board the said vessel, during her passage from Tobago to Antigua. 
And this deponent further saith, that he never heard the said Mungo Maxwell 
complain of having received any ill usage from the said Captain John Paul; 
but that he, this deponent, verily believes the said Mungo Maxwell's death was 



CALUMNY. 17 

groundless, that twenty years afterwards, when Paul Jones 
was a rear-admiral in the Russian service, the same calum- 
nious story was revived, though Maxwell the carpenter was 
then transformed into Jones's own nephew. This was done 
to injure him with the Empress Catherine, and when, instead 
of his ancient school- fellows of Kirkbean, or ship-mates of 
Kirkcudbright, his rivals were the Princes Potemkin and De 
Nassau. 

One of the earliest letters of Jones now extant relates to 
this unfortunate affair, which was calculated to make a deep 
impression on a young and ingenuous mind, and gave much 
uneasiness and pain to him. The letter is addressed to his 
mother and sisters, and gives a better and fairer view of his 
youthful character than could be given by the most laboured 
panegyric of a biographer : — 

u London, 24th September, 1772. 
" My dear Mother and Sistees, 

" I only arrived here last night from the Grenadas. I have 
had but poor health during the voyage ; and my success in it 
not having equalled my first sanguine expectations, has added 
very much to the asperity of my misfortunes, and, I am well 
assured, was the cause of my loss of health. I am now, 

occasioned by a fever and lowness of spirits, as aforesaid, and not by or 
through any other cause or causes whatsoever. 

"James Eastjieni 
" Sworn at the Mansion House, London, 

this 30th of January, 1773, before me, 

James Townsend, Mayor." 

"These do certify to whom it may concern, that the bearer, Captain John 
Paul, was two voyages master of a vessel called the John, in our employ in 
*he West India trade, during which time he approved himself every way 
qualified both as a navigator and supercargo; but as our present firm is dis 
solved, the vessel Mas sold, and of course he is out of our employ, all accounts 
between him and the owners being amicably adjusted. Certified at Kirkcud- 
bright Uiis 1st April, 1771. 

"Currie, Beck & Co." 



18 LETTER TO HIS FAMILY. 

however, better, and I trust Providence will soon put me in 
a way to get bread, and (which is by far my greatest happi 
ncss) be serviceable to my poor but much valued friends. I 
am able to give you no account of my future proceedings, 
as they depend upon circumstances which are not fully 
determined. 

" I have enclosed you a copy of an affidavit made before 
Governor Young, by the Judge of the Court of Vice- Admi- 
ralty of Tobago, by which you will see with how little reason 
my life has been thirsted after, and, which is much dearer to 
me, my honour, by maliciously loading my fair character 
with obloquy and vile aspersions. I believe there are few 
who are hard-hearted enough to think I have not long since 
given the world every satisfaction in my power, being con- 
scious of my innocence before Heaven, who will one day 
judge even my judges. I staked my honour, life, and fortune 
for six long months on the verdict of a British jury, notwith- 
standing I was sensible of the general prejudices which ran 
against me ; but, after all, none of my accusers had the cour- 
age to confront me. Yet I am willing to convince the world, if 
reason and facts will do it, that they have had no foundation 
for their harsh treatment. I mean to send Mr. Craik a copy 
properly proved, as his nice feelings will not perhaps be 
otherways satisfied ; # in the mean time, if you please, you 
may show him that enclosed. His ungracious conduct to me 
before I left Scotland I have not yet been able to get the 
better of. Every person of feeling must think meanly of add- 
ing to the load of the afflicted. It is true I bore it with 
seeming unconcern, but Heaven can witness for me that I 
suffered the more on that very account. But enough of 
this. And now a word or two in the family way, and I 
have done." 



* Mr. Craik was perfectly convinced of his innocence, but they nevei either 
met or cor-espcnded afterwards. 



MR. CRAIK. 19 

As the employer and patron of his deceased father, young 
Paul naturally looked to Mr. Craik for advice and counte- 
nance to himself, and for protection and kindness to his help- 
less female relatives. The following letter illustrates the true 
nature of his connexion with that gentleman, the fetters of 
whose cautious kindness do not appear to have sat very 
easily upon him. It also throws an incidental light on his 
energetic and self-depending character, even at this early 
period of his life : — 

" St. George's, Grenada, 5th August, 1770. 
« Sir, 

" Common report here says that my owners are going to 
finish their connexions in the West Indies as fast as possible. 
How far this is true I shall not pretend to judge ; but should 
that really prove the case, you know the disadvantages I 
must of course labour under. 

" These, however, would not have been so great had I 
been acquainted with the matter sooner, as in that case I 
believe I could have made interest with some gentleman here 
to have been concerned with me in a large ship out of Lon- 
don; and as these gentlemen have estates in this and the 
adjacent islands, I should have been able to make two 
voyages every year, and always had a full ship out and 
home, &c. &c. &c. 



u However, I by no means repine, as it is a maxim with 
ine to do my best, and leave the rest to Providence. I shall 
take no step whatever without your knowledge and appro- 
bation. 

" I have had several very severe fevers lately, which 
have reduced me a good deal, though I am now perfectly 
recovered. 



20 IN THE INDIA TRADE. 

" I must beg you to supply my mother should she want 
anything, as I well know. your readiness. 

" I hope yourself and family enjoy health and happiness. 
I am, most sincerely, 

" Sir, yours always, 

" John Paul." 

It has been alleged, that about this time young Paul was 
engaged in the contraband trade, then very generally prac- 
tised among the self-named fair-dealers of the towns along 
both shores of the Solway. Without entering into the ques- 
tion of how far at that period the act of smuggling might 
otherwise affect a man's moral character or estimation in 
society, it is certain that Jones long afterwards decidedly 
and indignantly repelled this degrading charge, and that the 
first entry of goods from England to the Isle of Man. after 
that nest of smugglers and centre of the contraband trade 
had been annexed to the crown, stands in his name in the 
Custom-house books of Douglas. 

Soon after this period Paul obtained command of the 
Betsy of London, a West India ship„and remained for a time 
in the islands engaged in commercial speculations, to which 
his subsequent letters refer. He appears to have left consi- 
derable funds in Tobago; and in 1773 we find him in Virginia 
arranging the affairs of his brother William, who had died 
intestate, and without leaving children. About this time he 
assumed the name of Jones. 

The American Revolution, of the progress of which Paul 
Jones could not have been an indifferent spectator, found him 
living in deep retirement, unoccupied, and for the time in a 
state of great privation, occasioned by the dilatoriness or 
misconduct of his agents. At this time he had subsisted for 
twenty months on the sum of fifty pounds. \t is to this 
period that Jones refers in his celebrated letter' to the Count- 



RETIREMENT. 21 

ess of Selkirk, when he says, " Before this war began I had 
at the early time of life withdrawn from the sea-service, in 
favour of ' calm contemplation and poetic ease* I have sacri- 
ficed not only my favourite scheme of life, but the softei 
affections of the heart, and my prospects of domestic happi- 
ness, and am ready to sacrifice my life also with cheerful- 
ness, if that forfeiture could restore peace and good-will 
among mankind." 




22 ENTERS THE AMERICAN SERVICE. 




CHAPTER II. 



UT Jones, whatever he might think, 
'was not of the temperament to 
which the cultivation of maize and 
tobacco — which in America about 
Hhat period must have compre- 
hended " the rural life in all its joy 
>and elegance" — could long remain 
the favourite scheme. He was 
now twenty-eight — the very prime 
of active existence — full of talent and enterprise, ardent and 
ambitious, and quite of the mind in which he seems to have 
held through life, that though it might be shame to be on any 
side but one, it was greater shame to lie idle when blows 
were going. Many causes combined to make him believe the 
cause of the colonies the right one — the cause of liberty, 
justice, and humanity. A man who from the age of twelve 
had been a wanderer on the deep, must have been as much 
at home in America as in Britain. Both countries must have 
appeared integral portions of the same state; and in its civil 
dissensions, circumstances determined the part he should take. 
Thus right or wrong as to the side he took, Jones stood clear 
in his motives to his own conscience. To him indeed the 
cause of America — the country, as he afterwards terms it, 
of his "fond election"— was the elevating source of his most 
brilliant actions. It is but fair to allow him to be the inter- 
preter of his own motives : — of his deeds every man is at 
liberty to judge. Four years after he had volunteered in the 
cause of America, it is thus he addresses the Baron Vander 



ENTERS THE AMERICAN SERVICE. 23 

Capellan, having, it must be owned, a favourite object to 
carry at Amsterdam : — 

" I was indeed born in Britain ; but I do not inherit the 
degenerate spirit of that fallen nation, which I at once lament 
and despise. It is far beneath me to reply to their hireling 
invectives. They are strangers to the inward approbation 
that greatly animates and rewards the man who draws his 
sword only in support of the dignity of freedom. America 
has been the country of my fond election from the age of 
thirteen, when I first saw it I had the honour to hoist with mj> 
own hands the flag of freedom, the first time it was displayed, 
on the Delaware ; and I have attended it with veneration 
ever since on the ocean.'' 

Though in the heat of a struggle, which, from its very na- 
ture, was, like the feuds of the nearest relatives, singularly ran- 
corous and bitter, Jones was branded as a traitor and a felon, 
and after his most brilliant action, the capture of the Serapis, 
formally denounced by the British ambassador at the Hague 
as a rebel and a pirate according to the laws of war,* it 
must be remembered that he bore this stigma in common with 
the best and greatest of his contemporaries — with Franklin 
and Washington ; which last had actually borne arms in the 
service of the King of England. The memory of Paul Jones 
now needs little vindication for this important step. After 
the peace he enjoyed the esteem and private friendship of 
Englishmen who might have forgiven the most imbittered 
political hostility, but never could have overlooked a taint on 
personal honour. Of this number was the Earl of Wemyss, 
who after the peace endeavoured to promote the views of 
Jones on various occasions. He himself, however, discovers 
a lurking consciousness of having incurred, if not of meriting, 
suspicion on this delicate ground. This is chiefly displayed 

* Memorial of Sir Joseph York to the States-General, dated the Hague. 
8th October, 1779. 



24 CHARACTER. 

by his eloquent though rather frequent assertions of purity of 
motive, superiority to objects of sordid interest, and disinte- 
rested zeal for the cause, now of America, now of human 
nature, as was best adapted to the supposed inclinations of 
his correspondents. In ordinary circumstances much of this 
might have appeared uncalled for ; but the situation of Jones 
was in many respects peculiar both as a native-born Briton, 
and as a man of obscure origin, jealous — and pardonably so 
— of his independence and dignity of character. Somewhat 
of the heroic vaunting which marks other parts of his corre- 
spondence appears incident to the enthusiastic tempeio.ment 
of many great naval commanders. How would Nelson's 
tone of confident prediction, and boasts of prowess, have 
sounded from the lips of an inferior man 1 — In any other than 
himself the customary language of Drake would have been 
reckoned that of an insolent braggart. 

Besides the public spirit and love of liberty which in Jones 
were both warm and sincere, other motives of that mixed 
nature, by which every human being, how disinterested and 
devoted soever, must at times be influenced, were not want- 
ing to enlist him on the side of the colonies. He was living at 
the most active period of life in penury and neglect. His 
friendships, his interests, his gratitude, all inclined him to the 
part of America. In a letter addressed to Mr. Stuart Mawey 
of Tobago, written immediately before he went to Europe 
in open hostility as an officer of the United States, a letter 
which does as much honour to the clearness of his head as 
to the integrity and filial kindness of his heart, these circum- 
stances are distinctly explained. 

"Boston, 4th May, 1777. 
"Dear Sir, 

" After an unprofitable suspense of twenty months, (having 
subsisted on fifty 'pounds only during that time,) when my 
hopes of relief were entirely cut off, and there remained no 



LETTER TO MR. MAWEY. 2 

possibility of my receiving wherewithal to subsist upon from 
my effects in your island, or in England, I at last had recourse 
to strangers for that aid and comfort which was denied me 
by those friends whom I had entrusted with my all. The 
good offices which are rendered to persons in their extreme 
need, ought to make deep impressions on grateful minds ; in 
my case I feel the truth of that sentiment, and am bound by 
gratitude, as well as honour, to follow the fortunes of my late 
benefactors. 

" I have lately seen Nr. Sicaton, (late manager on the 
estates of Arch. Stuart, Esq.) who informed me that Mr. 
Ferguson had quitted Orange Valley, on being charged with 
the unjust application of the property of his employers. 1 
have been, and am extremely concerned at this account ; I 
wish to disbelieve it, although it seems too much of a piece 
with the unfair advantage which, to all appearance, he took 
of me, when he left me in exile for twenty months, a prey to 
melancholy and want, and withheld my property, without 
writing a word in excuse for his conduct. Thus circum- 
stanced, I have taken the liberty of sending you a letter of 
attorney by Captain Cleaveland, who undertakes to deliver 
it himself, as he goes for Tobago via Martinico. You have 
enclosed a copy of a list of debts acknowledged, which I re 
ceived from Mr. Ferguson when I saw you last at Orange 
Valley. You have also a list of debts contracted with me. 
together with Ferguson's receipt. And there remained a 
considerable property unsold, besides some best Madeira 
wine which he had shipped for London. By the state of ac- 
counts which I sent to England on my arrival on this conti- 
nent, there was a balance due to me from the ship Betsy of 
909/. 15s. 3d. sterling ; and in my account with Robert 
Youn£, Esq., 29th January, 1773, there appeared a balance 
in my favour of 281/. Is. 8d. sterling. These sums exceea 
my drafts and just debts together ; so that, if I am fairly dealt 
with, I ought to receive a considerable remittance from that 
3 



26 LETTER TO MR. MAWEY. 

quarter. You will please to observe, that there were nine 
pieces of coarse camblets shipped at Cork, over and above the 
quantity expressed in the bill of lading. It seems the ship- 
pers, finding their mistake, applied for their goods ; and, as I 
have been informed from Grenada, Mr. Ferguson laid hold 
of this opportunity to propagate a report that all the goods 
which I put into his hands were the property of that house in 
Cork. If this base suggestion hath gained belief, it accounts 
for all the neglect which I have experienced. But however 
my connexions are changed, my principles as an honest man 
of candour and integrity are the same ; therefore, should there 
not be a sufficiency of my property in England to answer my 
just debts, 1 declare that it is my first wish to make up such 
deficiency from my property in Tobago ; and were even that 
also to fall short, I am ready and willing to make full and 
ample remittances from hence upon hearing from you the true 
state of my affairs. As I hope my dear mother is still alive, 
I must inform you that I wish my property in Tobago, or in 
England, after paying my just debts, to be applied for her 
support. Your own feelings, my dear sir, make it unneces- 
sary for me to use arguments to prevail with you on this 
tender point Any remittances which you may be enabled 
to make through the hands of my good friend Captain John 
Plainer of Cork, will be faithfully put into her hands ; she hath 
several orphan grandchildren to provide for. I have made 
no apology for giving you this trouble : My situation will, I 
trust, obtain your free pardon. 

I am always, with perfect esteem, 
Dear Sh 
Your very ooliged, very obedient, 
And most humble servant, 

" J. Paul Jones. 

■* Stuart Mawey, Esquire, 
Tobago." 



APPOINTED SENIOR LIEUTENANT. 27 

Among the friends whose fortunes Jones conceived himself 
bound to follow by gratitude as well as honour, was probably 
Mr. Joseph Hewes of the Marine Commitee of the infant 
Republic. Under the united influence of so many powerful 
motives he entered the American service. 

Though Paul Jones had not received his maritime educa- 
tion in ships of war, he had frequently sailed in armed vessels 
ind had been early trained into an excellent practical seaman 
completely realizing the merchant sailor's adage, " Aft the 
more Honour — forward the better man." His nautical skill, 
as well as his boldness and capacity, were thus of incalculable 
value to the infant navy of America; and in 1775, when the 
combustibles of revolution, so long smouldering, burst into an 
open irrepressible flame, his services were as readily accepted 
as they were heartily tendered. From this date Paul Jones 
owned no country save America. 

In organizing the maritime service of the young Republic, 
three classes of lieutenants were appointed by Congress; and of 
the first class Jones was appointed senior lieutenant. The first 
commission he received from Congress bears date the 7th of 
December, 1775. He was appointed to the Alfred, a name 
of good omen to an infant state sprung from England ; and on 
board of that vessel, then lying before Philadelphia, he, in a 
few days afterwards, first hoisted that starry flag which he so 
bravely followed in many seas. 

The American navy at this time consisted of only two ships, 
two brigantines, and one sloop. Even these it was not easy 
to officer with persons properly qualified. Thirteen frigates 
were, however, about the same time ordered to be built. 

Of this first period of his service three different accounts, 
drawn up by himself, remain among the papers of Captain 
Jones, — one contained in a refreshing memorial addressed to 
Congress while he lay in the Texel, dated December, 1779 
— another addressed to Robert Morris, the minister of the 
marine, in 1783, when Jones had just reason to think his 



28 



JONES'S JOURNAL. 




t^/4^M^W^ 




Hoisting the American Flag. 



former services neglected, if not forgotton, — and a third in a 
journal of his campaigns drawn up for the private information 
of the King of France, and read by that unfortunate prince 
while a close prisoner. This last document contains the 
following clear and succinct account of his early operations, 
written in the third person : — 

" When Congress thought fit to equip a naval force towards 
the conclusion of the year 1775, 'for the defence of American 
liberty, and for repelling every hostile invasion thereof 1 it was 
a very difficult matter to find men fitly qualified for officers, 
and willing to embark in the ships and vessels that were then 
put into commission. The American navy at first was no 
more than the ships Alfred and Columbus, the brigantines 
Andrew Doria, and Cabot, and the sloop Providence. A 
commander-in-chief of the fleet was appointed ; and Cap- 
tains Saltonstall, Whipple, Biddle, and Hopkins, were named 



HOISTS THE AMERICAN FLAG. 
for the ships and brigantines. A captain's commission for the 
Providence, (bought, or to be bought, about the time, from 
Captain Whipple,) which Mr. Joseph Hewes of the Mai me 
Committee offered to his friend Mr. John Paul Jones, was not 
accepted, because Mr. Jones had never sailed in a sloop, and 
had then no idea of the Declaration of Independence that took 
place the next year. It was his early wish to do his best for 
the cause of America, which he considered as the cause of 
human nature. He could have no object of self-interest ; and 
having then no prospect that the American navy would soon 
become an established service, that rank was the most ac- 
ceptable to him by which he could be the most useful in that 
moment of public calamity. There were three classes of 
lieutenants appointed, and Mr. Jones was appointed the first 
of the first-lieutenants, which placed him next in command 
to the four captains already mentioned. This commission is 
dated the 7th day of December, 1775, as first-lieutenant of 
the Alfred. On board of that ship, before Philadelphia, Mr. 
Jones hoisted the flag of America with his own hands, the 
first time it was ever displayed. All the commissions for the 
Alfred were dated before the commissions for the Columbus, 
&c. All the time this little squadron was fitting and man- 
ning, Mr. Jones superintended the affairs of the Alfred ; and 
as Captain Saltonstall did not appear at Philadelphia, the 
commander-in-chief told Mr. Jones he should command that 
ship. A day or two before the squadron sailed from Phila- 
delphia, manned and fit for sea, Captain Saltonstall appeared, 
and took command of the Alfred. The object of the first ex- 
pedition was against Lord Duncan, in Virginia. But instead 
of proceeding immediately on that service, the squadron was 
hauled to the wharfs at Reedy Island, and lay there for six 
weeks frozen up. Here Mr. Jones and the other lieutenants 
stood the deck, watch and watch, night and day, to prevent 
desertion: and they lost no man from the Alfred. On the 
17th of February, 1776, the squadron sailed from the bay of 
3* 



30 



SAILING OF THE SQUADRON. 




Sailing of the Squadron. 



Delaware. On the first of March the squadron anchored at 
Abaco, one of the Bahama Islands, and carried in there two 
sloops belonging to New Providence. Some persons on board 
the sloops, informed that a quantity of powder and warlike 
stores might be taken in the forts of New Providence. An 
expedition was determined on against that island. It was 
resolved to embark the marines on board the two sloops. 
They were to remain below deck until the sloops had an- 
chored in the harbour close to the forts, and they were then 
to land and take possession. There was not a single soldier 
in the island to oppose them ; therefore the plan would ha ve 
succeeded, and not only the public stores might have been 
secured, but a considerable contribution might have been ob- 
tained as a ransom for the town and island, had not the whole 
squadron appeared off the harbour in the morning, instead of 
remaining out of sight till after the sloops had entered and 
the marines secured the forts. On the appearance of the 
squadron the signal of alarm was fired, so that it was impos- 



THE PROVIDENCE EXPEDITION. 31 

sible to think of crossing the bar. The commander-in-chief 
proposed to go round the west end of the island, and endea- 
vour to march the marines up and get behind the town ; but 
this could never have been effected. The islanders would 
have had time to collect ; there was no fit anchorage for the 
squadron, nor road from that part of the island to the town. 
Mr. Jones finding by the Providence pilots that the squadron 
might anchor under a key three leagues to windward of the 
harbour, gave this account to the commander-in-chief, who 
objecting to the dependence on the pilots, Mr. Jones under- 
took to carry the Alfred safe in. He took the pilot with him 
to the foretopmast head, from whence they could clearly see 
every danger, and the squadron anchored safe. The marines, 
with two vessels to cover their landing, were immediately 
sent in by the east passage. The commander-in-chief pro 
mised to touch no private property. The inhabitants aban- 
doned the forts, and the governor, finding he must surrender 
the island, embarked all the powder in two vessels, and sent 
them away in the night. This was foreseen, and might have 
been prevented, by sending the two brigantines to lie off the 
bar. The squadron entered the harbour of New Providence, 
and sailed from thence the 17th of March, having embarked 
the cannon, &c, that was found in the fort. In the night of 
the 9th of April, on the return of the squadron from the Pro- 
vidence expedition, the American arms by sea were first tried 
in the affair with the Glasgow, off Block Island. Both the 
Alfred and Columbus mounted two batteries. The Alfred 
mounted 30, the Columbus 28 guns. The first battery was so 
near the water as to be fit for nothing except in a harbour or 
a very smooth sea. The sea was at the time perfectly smooth. 
Mr. Jones was stationed below deck to command the Alfred's 
first battery, which was well served whenever the guns could 
be brought to bear on the enemy, as appears by the officia 
letter of the commander-in-chief giving an account of that 
action. Mr- Jones therefore did his duty: and as he had no 



32 COMMANDS THE PROVIDENCE. 

direction whatever, either of the general disposition of the 
squadron, or the sails and helm of the Alfred, he can stand 
charged with no part of the disgrace of that night. The 
squadron steered directly for New T London, and entered that 
port two days after the action. Here General Washington 
lent the squadron 200 men, as was thought, for some enter 
prise. The squadron, however, stole quietly round to Rhode 
Island, and up the river to Providence. Here a court-martial 
was held for the trial of Captain Whipple, for not assisting in 
the action with the Glasgow. Another court-martial was 
held for the trial of Captain Hazard, who had been appointed 
captain of the sloop Providence at Philadelphia, some time 
after Mr. Jones had refused that command. Captain Hazard 
was broke, and rendered incapable of serving in the navy. 
The next day, the 10th of May, 1776, Mr. Jones was ordered 
by the commander-in-chief to take command ' as captain of 
the Providence.' This proves that Mr. Jones did his duty 
on the Providence expedition. As the commander-in-chief 
had in his hands no blank-commission, he had this appoint- 
ment written on the back of the commission that Mr. Jones 
had received at Philadelphia, the 7th of December, 1775. 
Captain Jones had orders to receive on board the Providence 
the soldiers that had been borrowed from General Washing- 
ton, and carry them to New York, — there enlist as many 
seamen as he could, and then return to New London, to take 
in from the hospital all the seamen that had been left there 
by the squadron, and were recovered, and carry them to 
Providence. Captain Jones soon performed these services; 
and having hove down the sloop and partly fitted her for war 
at Providence, he received orders from the commander-in- 
chief, dated Rhode Island, June 10th, 1776, to come imme- 
diately down to take a sloop then in sight, armed for war, 
belonging to the enemy's navy. Captain Jones obeyed orders 
with alacrity; but the enemy had disappeared before he 
reached Newport On the 13th of June, 1776, Captain Jones 



CRUISE OF THE PROVIDENCE. 83 

received orders, dated that day at Newport, Rhode Island 
from the commander-in-chief, to proceed to Newbury Port to 
take under convoy some vessels bound for Philadelphia ; but 
first to convoy Lieutenant Hacker in the Fly, with a cargo 
of cannon, into the sound for New York, and to convoy some 
vessels back from Stonington to the entrance of Newport. 
In performing these last services, Captain Jones found great 
difficulty from the enemy's frigates, then cruising round 
Block Island, with which he had several rencontres ; in one 
of which he saved a brigantine that was a stranger, from 
Hispanjola, closely pursued by the Cerberus, and laden with 
public stores. That brigantine was afterwards purchased by 
the Continent, and called the Hampden. Captain Jones re- 
ceived orders from the commander-in-chief to proceed for 
Boston instead of Newbury Port. At Boston he was detained 
a considerable time by the backwardness of the agent. He 
arrived with his convoy from Boston, safe in the Delaware, 
the 1st of August, 1776. This service was performed while 
the enemy were arriving at Sandy Hook from Halifax and 
England, and Captain Jones saw several of their ships oi 
war. 

"Captain Jones received a captain's commission from the 
President of Congress, the 8th of August. It was pro- 
posed to Captain Jones by the Marine Committee to go to 
Connecticut, to command the brigantine Hampden ; but he 
choosing rather to remain in the sloop Providence, had orders 
to go out on a cruise against the enemy ' for six weeks, (or) 
two or three months.' He was not limited to any particular 
station or service. He left the Delaware on the 21st of 
August, and arrived at Rhode Island on the 7th of Octobei . 
1776. 

"Captain Jones had only 70 men when he sailed from the 
Delaware, and the Providence mounted only 12 four-poundei>. 
Near the latitude of Bermudas he had a very narrow escape 
from the enemy's frigate the Solebay, after a chase of siy 



34 



ACTION WITH THE MILFORD. 




Escape from the Solebay. 



hours within cannon-shot, and part of that time within pistol- 
shot. Afterwards, near the Isle of Sable, Captain Jones had 
an affair with the enemy's frigate the Milford ; and the firing 
between them lasted from ten in the morning: till after sunset. 




Action with the Milford. 



The day after this rencontre, Captain Jones entered the 
harbour of Canso, where he recruited several men, took the 
Tories' flags, destroyed the fishing, &c, and sailed again the 
next morning on an expedition against the Island of Madame. 
He made two descents on the principal forts of that island at 



WRECK OF THE HAMPDEN. 35 

the same time ; surprised all their shipping, though the place 
abounded with men, and they had arms. All this, from the 
Delaware to Rhode Island, was performed in six weeks and 
five days ; in which time Captain Jones made sixteen prizes, 
besides small craft. He manned eight of them, and sunk, 
burnt, or destroyed the rest. The commander-in-chief was 
at Rhode Island, who, in consequence of the information 
given him by Captain Jones, adopted an expedition against 
the coal-fleet of Cape Breton and the fishery, as well as to 
relieve a number of Americans from the coal-mines, where 
they were compelled to labour by the enemy. The Alfred 
had remained idle ever since the Providence expedition, and 
was without men. It was proposed to employ that ship, the 
brigantine Hampden, and sloop Providence, on this expedition, 
under the command of Captain Jones, who had orders given 
him for that purpose on the 22d October, 1776, and then re- 
moved from the sloop Providence to the ship Alfred. Find- 
ing he could not enlist a sufficient number of men for the 
three sail before the season would be lost, Captain Jones de- 




Wreck of the Hampden. 



termined to leave the sloop Providence behind ; but Captain 
Hacker ran the Hampden upon a ledge of rocks on the 27th, 
and knocked off her keel, which obliged Captain Jones to re- 



at) EXPEDITION AGAINST CAPE BRETON. 

move him Into the sloop Providence. The Alfred and Pro 
vidence sailed on this expedition the 2d of November, 
Captain Jones having only 140 men on his muster-roll for the 
Alfred, though that ship had 235 men when she left the 
Delaware. Captain Jones anchored for the night at Tur- 
pawling Cove, near Nantucket, and, finding there a privateer 
schooner belonging to Rhode Island inward-bound, he sent 
his boat to search for deserters from the navy, and finding 
(bur deserters carefully concealed on board, they were taken 
on board the Alfred, with a few other seamen, agreeably to 
orders from the commander-in-chief. The concerned in the 
privateer brought an action against Captain Jones for 10,000/. 
damages, and the commander-in-chief had the politeness not 
to support him. Captain Jones proceeded on his expedition. 
Off Louisbourg he took a brig with a rich cargo of dry goods; 
a snow with a cargo of fish, and a ship called the Mellish. 
bound for Canada, armed for war, and laden with soldiers' 
clothing. The day after taking these prizes (the 18th) the 
snow fell, and the wind blew fresh off Cape Breton. To 
prevent separation, and not from the violence of the weather. 
Captain Jones made the signal to lay to, which was obeyed ; 
but as soon as the night began, Captain Hacker bore away. 
He made shift to arrive at Rhode Island a day or two before 
the place was taken by the enemy. Captain Jones ordered 
the brigantine and snow to steer for our ports ; but determined 
not to lose sight of the Mellish, unless in case of necessity. 
Captain Jones, after that little gale and contrary winds, fell 
in with Canso, and sent his boats in to destroy a fine trans- 
port that lay aground in the entrance, laden with Irish provi- 
sion. The party burnt also the oil-warehouse, and destroyed 
the materials for the fishery. Off Louisbourg, on the 24th 
he took three fine ships out of five, the coal-fleet, then bound 
for New York, under the command of the Flora, that would 
have been in sight had the fog been dispersed. Two days 
after this, Captain Jones took a letter-of-marque ship from 



ARRIVAL AT BOSTON. 39 

Liverpool. He had now a hundred and fifty prisoners on 
board the Alfred, and a great part of his water and provision 
was consumed. He found the harbour at the coal-mines was 
frozen up, and necessity obliged him to seek a hospitable port 
with the five prize-ships under convoy. No separation took 
place till the 7th of December, on the edge of St. George's 
Bank, where Captain Jones again fell in with the Milford 
frigate. Captain Jones had the address to save all his prizes 
except one, (the letter-of-marque from Liverpool,) and that one 
would not have been taken, had not the prize-master foolishly 
run down under the Milford's lee, from being three leagues 
to windward. The Mellish arrived safe with the clothing at 
Dartmouth, and Captain Jones arrived at Boston the 15th 
December, 1776, having only two days' water and provision 
left. The news of the clothing reached General Washing- 
ton's army just before he recrossed the Delaware. By a 
letter from the commander-in-chief, on board the Warren, at 
Providence, January the 14th, 1777, Captain Jones was su- 
perseded in the command of the Alfred, in favour of Captain 
Hinman, who said he brought a commission from Congress 
to supersede that of Captain Jones. The 21st of January, 
1777, this drew from Captain Jones a letter to the Marine 
Committee, stating his hopes that Congress would not so far 
overlook his early and faithful services as to supersede him 
by any man who was at first his junior officer, far less by 
any man who declined to serve in the Alfred, &c, at the be- 
ginning. Captain Jones paid off the crews of the Alfred and 
Providence, for which he has never been reimbursed. On 
the 18th of February, Captain Jones received an appointment 
by order of Congress from the Vice-President of the Marine 
Committee, dated Philadelphia, February the 5th, 1777, to 
command private expeditions against Pensacola and other 
places, with the Alfred, Columbus, Cabot, Hampden, and 
sloop Providence. Many important schemes were pointed 
out; but Captain Jones was left at free liberty to adopt what- 



10 LETTER OF EXPOSTULATION. 

ever he thought best. This appointment fell to nothing ; foi 
the commander-in-chief would not assist Captain Jones, bul 
affected to disbelieve his appointment. Captain Jones under- 
took a journey from Boston to Philadelphia, in order to ex- 
plain matters to Congress in person." 

This attempt to supersede him was the first occasion on 
which Jones decidedly showed the firmness and tenacity of 
his character, and his determination to assert his rights. 
Even then, unknown and unfriended, he was quite equal to 
their protection. 

The remainder of this statement is more copiously and 
energetically given in the letter referred to in the prefixed ex- 
tract, as addressed by him to the Marine Board, Philadelphia. 
It will show the neglect and heart-burning to which this brave 
man was exposed from the first hour of his entering the 
American navy. Three-fourths of his subsequent life was a 
struggle to overcome the prejudices, defeat the cabals, or 
quicken the tardy justice of his temporary official superiors. 

" I am now to inform you, that by a letter from Commo- 
dore Hopkins, dated on board the Warren, January 14th, 
1777, which came to my hands a day or two ago, I am 
superseded in the command of the Alfred, in favour of Cap- 
tain Hinman, and ordered back to the sloop in Providence 
river. Whether this order doth or doth not supersede also 
your orders to me of the 10th ult., you can best determine; 
however, as I undertook the late expedition at his (Commo- 
dore Hopkins's) request, from a principle of humanity, I 
mean not now to make a difficulty about trifles, especially 
wnen the good of the service is to be consulted. As I am 
unconscious of any neglect of duty, or misconduct, since my 
appointment at the first as eldest lieutenant of the navy, I 
^annot suppose that you can have intended to set me aside, 
in favour of any man who did not at that time bear a cap- 
tain's commission, unless, indeed, that man, by exerting his 
superior abilities, hath rendered, or can render, more impor- 



LETTER OF EXPOSTULATION. 41 

tant services to America. Those who stepped forth at the 
first, in ships altogether unfit for war, were generally con- 
sidered rather as frantic than as wise men ; for it must be 
remembered, that almost everything then made against them. 
And although the success in the affair with the Glasgow was 
not equal to what it might have been, yet the blame ought 
not to be general. The principal or principals in command 
alone are culpable ; and the other officers, while they stand 
unimpeached, have their full merit. There were, it is true, 
divers persons, from misrepresentation, put into commission 
at the beginning, without fit qualification, and perhaps the 
number may have been increased by later appointments ; but 
it follows not that the gentleman or man of merit should be 
neglected or overlooked on their account. None other than 
a gentleman, as well as a seaman both in theory and practice, 
is qualified to support the character of a commission officer 
in the navy ; nor is any man fit to command a ship of war 
who is not also capable of communicating his ideas on paper, 
in language that becomes his rank. If this be admitted, the 
foregoing operations will be sufficiently clear ; but if further 
proof is required it can easily be produced. 

" When I entered into the service, I was not actuated by 
motives of self-interest. I stept forth as a free citizen of the 
world, in defence of the violated rights of mankind, and not 
in search of riches, whereof, I thank God, I inherit a suffi- 
ciency ; but I should prove my degeneracy were I not in the 
highest degree tenacious of my rank and seniority. As a 
gentleman, I can yield this point up only to persons of supe- 
rior abilities and superior merit ; and under such persons it 
would be my highest ambition to learn. As this is the first 
time of my having expressed the least anxiety on my own 
account, I must entreat your patience until I account to you 
for the reason which hath given me this freedom of senti- 
ment. It seems that Captain Hinman's commission is No. 1, 
and that, in consequence, he who was at first my junior 
4* 



42 MEMORIAL TO CONGRESS. 

officer by eight, hath expressed himself as my senior officer in 
a manner which doth himself no honour, and which doth me 
signal injury. There are also in the navy, persons who have 
not shown me fair play after the service I have rendered 
them. I have even been blamed for the civilities which I 
have shown to my prisoners ; at the request of one of whom 
I herein enclose an appeal, which I must beg leave to lay 
before Congress. Could you see the appellant's accomplished 
lady, and the innocents their children, arguments in their 
behalf would be unnecessary. As the base-minded only are 
capable of inconsistencies, you will not blame my free soul, 
which can never stoop where I cannot also esteem. Could 
I, which I never can, bear to be superseded, I should indeed 
deserve your contempt and total neglect. I am, therefore, to 
entreat you to employ me in the most enterprising and active 
service, — accountable to your honourable board only, for my 
conduct, and connected as much as possible with gentlemen 
and men of good sense." 

" My conduct hitherto," he says, in the memorial ad- 
dressed to Congress from the Texel, " was so much approv- 
ed of by Congress, that on the 5th February, 1777, I was 
appointed, with unlimited orders, to command a little squadron 
of the Alfred, Columbus, Cabot, Hampden, and sloop Provi- 
dence. Various important services were pointed out, but I 
was left at free liberty to make my election. That service, 
nowever, did not take place ; for the commodore, who had 
three of the squadron blocked in at Providence, affected to 
disbelieve my appointment, and would not at last give me 
the necessary assistance. Finding that he trifled with my 
applications as well as the orders of Congress, I undertook 
a journey from Boston to Philadelphia, in order to explain 
matters to Congress in person. I took this step also, because 
Captain Hinman had succeeded me in the command of the 
Alfred, and, of course, the service could not suffer through 
my absence. I arrived at Philadelphia in the beginning of 



HIS VIEWS OF MARITIME POLICY. 43 

April. But what was my surprise to find, that, by a new 
line of navy-rank, which had taken place on the 10th day of 
October, 1776, all the officers that had stepped forth at the 
beginning were superseded ! I was myself superseded by 
thirteen men, not one of whom did (and perhaps some of 
them durst not) take the sea against the British flag at the 
first ; for several of them who were then applied to refused 
to venture, — and none of them have since been very happy 
in proving their superior abilities. Among these thirteen 
there are individuals who can neither pretend to parts nor 
education, and with whom, as a private gentleman, I would 
disdain to associate. 

" I leave your excellency and the Congress to judge how 
this must affect a man of honour and sensibility." 

In the organization of the navy Jones took a paramount 
interest. He had himself been trained in a good school. 
He knew the importance of proper subordination, and of the 
strict enforcement of a rigid system of discipline, which, 
however unpleasant to the turbulent, fierce spirit of republi- 
cans, is especially indispensable in the sea-service. His 
views of maritime policy discover much soundness, and, 
considering that he was still a young man, and a very young 
officer, very great ripeness of understanding. " As the regu- 
lations of the navy," he says, " are of the utmost conse- 
quence, you will not think it presumptive if, with the utmost 
diffidence, I venture to communicate to you such hints as, in 
my judgment, will promote its honour and good government. 
1 could heartily wish that every commissioned officer were 
to be previously examined ; for, to my certain knowledge, 
there are persons who have already crept into commission 
without abilities or fit qualifications : — I am myself far from 
desiring to be excused." In other letters on this subject, he 
eloquently recommends a liberal policy towards the private 
seamen, and a general system worthy of a great and enlight- 
ened nation. 



41 HIS VIEWS OF MARITIME POLICY. 

"It. is," he says, "to the last degree distressing to con- 
template the state and establishment of our navy. The 
common class of mankind are actuated by no nobler prin- 
ciple than that of self-interest. This, and this only, deter- 
mines all adventures in privateers, — the owners, as well as 
those they employ ; and while this is the case, unless the 
private emolument of individuals in our navy is made supe- 
rior to that in privateers, it never can become respectable, — 
it never will become formidable ; and, without a respectable 
navy, alas America ! — In the present critical situation of 
human affairs, wisdom can suggest no more than one Tnfalli- 
ble expedient, — enlist the seamen during pleasure, and give 
them all the prizes. What is the paltry emolument of two- 
thirds of prizes to the finances of this vast continent 1 If so 
poor a resource is essential to its independency, in sober sad- 
ness we are involved in a woful predicament, and our ruin is" 
fast approaching. The situation of America is new in the 
annals of mankind : her affairs crv haste! and speed must 
answer them. Trifles, therefore, ought to be wholly disre- 
garded, as being, in the old vulgar proverb, ' penny wise 
and pound foolish.' If our enemies, with the best established 
and most formidable navy in the universe, have found it 
expedient to assign all prizes to the captors, how much more 
is such policy essential to our infant fleet ? But I need use 
no arguments to convince you of the necessity of making 
the emoluments of our navy equal, if not superior, to theirs. 
We have had proof, that a navy may be officered almost 
upon any terms, but we are not so sure that these officers 
are equal to their commissions; nor will the Congress ever 
obtain such certainty until they, in their wisdom, see proper 
to appoint a Board of Admiralty, competent to determine 
impartially the respective merits and abilities of their officers, 
and to superintend, regulate, and point out all the motions 
and operations of the navy." 



EFFECT OF HIS REMONSTRANCES. 45 

The appearance of Jones at Congress at this time, his ap- 
peals to their justice, his animated remonstrances, .and the 
capacity displayed in the hints and projects he threw out, 
had a good effect. They inspired esteem for his character, 
and gave confidence in his ability. This became apparent 
| in the immediate proceedings of that body. " Congress," he 
says, " saw fit to drop the expedition that had been proposed ; 
and the Marine Committee appeared very sorry that there 
was not then vacant a good ship for my command. Three 
ships were ordered to be purchased in the eastern department, 
and by a resolve of Congress, which did me great honour, I 
was authorized to take my choice of these three ships, ' until 
Congress could provide for me a better command.' I returned 
to Boston ; and before this last plan was carried into execu- 
I tion, I received a new and honourable proof of the good 
opinion of Congress, by being ordered, on the 9th of May, 
1777, to proceed to France from Portsmouth, in the Am- 
phitrite, with a positive order to the Commissioners at Paris 
1 to invest me with the command of a fine ship/ — < as a reward 
| of my zeal and the signal services I had performed in vessels 
; of little force/ This was generous indeed ! and I shall feel 
| the whole force of the obligation to the last moment of 
I my life." 

The letter he brought to Europe, addressed to the Com- 
missioners in Paris, confirms the sincerity of the purpose of 
Congress. It also puts to rest — were such refutation neces- 
sary — the charge of Jones being nothing more than the com- 
mander of a privateer, winked at, or perhaps secretly aided 
by Congress, but never recognized as a regularly-appointed 
commander in the American service during his cruises on the 
British coasts. 



\() LETTER FROM CONGRESS. 

"Philadelphia, 9th May, 1777 
" Honourable Gentlemen, 

" This letter is intended to be delivered to you by John 
Paul Jones, Esq., an active and brave commander in our 
navy, who has already performed signal services in vessels 
of little force ; and in reward for his zeal we have directed 
him to go on board the Amphitrite, a French ship of twenty 
guns, that brought in a valuable cargo of stores from Mons. 
Hostalez & Co., and with her to repair to France. He takes 
with him his commission, some officers and men, so that we 
hope he will, under that sanction, make some good prizes with 
the Amphitrite ; but our design of sending him is, (with the ap- 
probation of Congress,) that you may purchase one of those 
fine frigates that Mr. Dean writes us you can get, and invest 
him with the command thereof as soon as possible. We' 
hope you may not delay this business one moment, but pur- 
chase, in such port or place in Europe as it can be done with 
most convenience and despatch, a fine fast-sailing frigate or 
larger ship. Direct Captain Jones where he must repair to, 
and he will take with him his officers and men towards man- 
ning her. You will assign him some good house or agent to 
supply him with everything necessary to get the ship speedily 
and well equipped and manned, — somebody that will bestir 
themselves vigorously in the business, and never quit it until 
it is accomplished. 

" If you have any plan or service to be performed in Europe 
by such a ship, that you think will be more for the interest 
and honour of the States than sending her out directly, Captain 
Jones is instructed to obey your orders ; and, to save repeti- 
tion, let him lay before you the instructions we have given 
him, and furnish you with a copy thereof. You can then 
judge what will be necessary for you to direct him in, — and 
whatever you do will be approved, as it will undoubted!} 
teud to promote the public service of this country. 



INSTRUCTIONS FROM CONGRESS. 4- 

" i r ou see by this step how much dependence Congress 

place in your advices ; and you must make it a point not to 

disappoint Captain Jones's wishes and expectations on tins 

occasion. 

"We are, &c. 
(Signed) " Robert Morris. 

" Richard Henry Lee. 
" Wm. Whipple. 
" Phil. Livingston. 

" The Honourable 

44 Benjamin Franklin, 

44 Silas Deane, and 

44 Arthur Lee, Esquires, 

Commissioners," &c. 



In Marine Committee. 

44 Philadelphia, May 9th, 1777. 
"John Paul Jones, Esq. v 

" Sir, 

" Congress have thought proper to authorize the Secret 
Committee to employ you on a voyage in the Amphitrite, 
from Portsmouth to Carolina and France, where it is expected 
you will be provided with a fine frigate ; and as your present 
commission is for the command of a particular ship, we now 
send you a new one, whereby you are appointed a captain 
in our navy, and of course may command any ship in the 
service to which you are particularly ordered. You are 
to obey the orders of the Secret Committee, and we are, 
Sir, &c. 

(Signed) " John Hancock. 

" Rob. Morris. 

" Wm. Whipple." 



48 INSTRUCTIONS FROM CONGRESS. 

In Marine Committee, 

"Philadelphia, September 6th, 1777. 
" Sir, 

" As soon as these instructions get to hand, you are to make 
immediate application to the proper persons to get your ves- 
sel victualled and fitted for sea with all expedition. When 
this is done, you are to proceed on a voyage to some conve- 
nient port in France; on your arrival there, apply to the agent, 
if any, in or near said port, for such supplies as you may 
stand in need of. You are at the same time to give immedi- 
ate notice, by letter, to the Honourable Benjamin Franklin, 
Silas Deane, and Arthur Lee, Esquires, or any of them at 
Paris, of your arrival, requesting their instructions as to your 
further destination ; which instructions you are to obey as far 
as it shall be in your power. 

" You are to take particular notice, that whilst on the coast 
of France, or in a French port, you are, as much as you 
conveniently can, to keep your guns covered and concealed, 
and to make as little warlike appearance as possible. Wish- 
ing you," &c. &c. 

With these credentials and instructions, Jones sailed for 
Europe in command of the Ranger, in high spirits, expecting 
to be the first messenger of what he calls " the joyful and 
important news of Burgoyne's surrender." He reached 
Nantes early in December, having captured two brigantines 
on the voyage, laden with fruit and wine. 




JONES AND THE COMMISSIONERS. 



40 



CHAPTER III. 




T must be owned that Captain 
Jones at no time slipped any 
opportunity of bringing him- 
self forward, and placing his 
services in a fair light. Though 
he indeed claimed no more 
than was his due, he never, 
through false delicacy, with- 
drew his merits into the shade. 
" It is civil cowardice," says the Spectator's modest friend, 
Captain Sentry, " to be backward in asserting what you 
ought to expect, as it is military fear to be slow in attacking 
when it is your duty." His first act, on reaching France, 
was to write to the Commissioners, to whom he was now to 
look for orders, and also for patronage. " I yesterday," he 
says, " enclosed you copies of two letters which I wrote you 
previous to my departure from Portsmouth, together with a 
plan which I drew up at Philadelphia, on the regulation and 
equipment of our infant navy. It is my first and favourite 
wish to be employed in active and enterprising services, 
when there is a prospect of rendering acceptable services 
to America. The singular honour which Congress have 
done me by their generous acknowledgment of my past ser- 
vices, hath inspired me with sentiments of gratitude which I 
shall cany with me to my grave; and if a life of services 
devoted to America can be made instrumental in securing its 
independence, I shall regard the continuance of such appro- 
bation as an honour far superior to what kings even coulo 
bestow." 



50 PLAN OF OPERATIONS DEFEATED. 

Captain Jones was immediately summoned to Paris by the 
commissioners of Congress, Franklin, Silas Deane, and 
Arthur Lee. They had not yet assumed the name of ple- 
nipotentiaries, nor was war declared between Great Britain 
and France ; for though' these countries were in a state of 
understood, if not avowed, hostility, in his private orders 
from the marine committee of Congress, Jones was directed 
to keep his guns covered and concealed as much as possible 
while on the coasts or in the ports of France, and as mucb 
as possible to avoid a warlike appearance. The object ol 
summoning him to Paris was to concert, in conjunction with 
the commissioners, a plan of operations for the powerful 
maritime force under the command of the Count d'Estaing, 
w T hich — a treaty being now concluded between France and 
the new states — was destined to harass the British, and sup- 
port the cause of the republic on the shores of America. 

The bold and sagacious plan of that campaign, which, 
if carried into effect as projected, must, in all probability, at 
once have ended the war, Jones repeatedly and openly claims 
the merit of having formed ;* and there can be no doubt that 
his knowledge of the actual state of the British land and naval 
force then acting in America, and his practical nautical ac- 
quaintance with the scene of operation, enabled him to give 
most important advice. Those delays, and the baffling cir- 
cumstances to which naval armaments are ever exposed, 
together, as has been alleged, with the timidity or irresolution 
of the French Commander, the promptitude and courage dis- 
played by Lord Howe, and the excellent spirit of the whole 
British fleet on that memorable occasion, disconcerted this 
well-imagined scheme. In claiming the plan of that expedi- 
tion, Jones says, in a letter addressed to the French Minister 



* In the memorial to the King of France, Jones states that the plan adopted 
for D'Estaing's expedition was sent by him to the Commissioners from Nantes, 
on the 10th February, 1778, after he had returned from Paris, and immediately 
en nearinc some agreeable news from Amend. 



THE INDIEN. 51 

of Marine, M. de Sartine, — " Had Count d'Estaing arrived 
in the Delaware a few days sooner, he might have made a 
most glorious and -easy conquest. Many successful projects 
may be adopted from the hints which I had the honour to 
draw up ; and if I can still furnish more, or execute any of 
these already furnished, so as to distress and humble the com- 
mon enemy, it will afford me the truest pleasure." Before 
D'Estaing appeared, however, Lord Howe, as has been noticed, 
had been able to place the fleet and the transports in safety ; 
and the plan on which the American Commissioners justly 
prided themselves of blocking up the British ships, transports, 
and victuallers, in the Delaware, thus fell to the ground. 

When Jones went to Paris to attend the Commissioners, he 
left the Ranger, which had been damaged in her voyage, 
refitting at Nantes. To the Commissioners he imparted plans 
of various enterprises to be undertaken in the bold predatory 
spirit of the private instructions of Morris, and he induced 
them to hold out to his crew, in the name of Congress, the 
hope or promise of some particular gratuity in reward of the 
" good, gallant behaviour and punctual obedience," so essen- 
tial to the furtherance of his daring projects. In coming to 
Europe he expected to obtain command of the Indien, a large 
frigate, then building at Amsterdam, for the service of the 
United States. This vessel the Commissioners thought fit to 
present to the King of France. Jones felt the disappointment, 
and even complained of it to Congress, making it an argu- 
ment for obtaining at least an equivalent command. 

On the 16th January, 1778, Jones received his orders 
from the Commissioners. They were such as ever proved 
the most agreeable to him — unlimited — implying full confi- 
dence in his zeal and ability. The only caution he received, 
was, not to return immediately to the ports of France after 
making an attempt on the coast of Britain, as the Fiench court 
wished to shuffle a little longer. 



52 



THE FIRST SALUTE. 




The first Salute. 



The Ranger being now refitted, Jones sailed to Quiberon. 
and at that place displayed considerable professional address 
and characteristic firmness, in compelling the French Admi- 
ral to give the American flag — which Jones had been the 
first to hoist — the first salute it ever received. It was thus 
he wrote on this occasion : 



" February, 14th, 1778. 
n Dear Sir, 

" I am extremely sorry to give you fresh trouble, but J 
think the Admiral's answer of yesterday requires an explana 
tion. The haughty English return gun for gun to foreign 
officers of equal rank, and two less only to captains by flag- 
officers. It is true, my command at present is not important, 
yet, as the senior American officer at present in Europe, it is 
my duty to claim an equal return of respect to the flag of 
the United States that would be shown to any other flag 
whatever. 

" I therefore take the liberty of enclosing an appointment 



JONES SAILS FROM BREST. 53 

perhaps as respectable as any which the French Admiral can 
produce — besides which I have others in my possession. 

" If, however, he persists in refusing to return an equal 
salute, I will accept of two guns less, as I have not the rank 
of Admiral. 

" It is my opinion, that he would return four less to a pri- 
vateer or a merchant ship ; therefore, as I have been honoured 
oftener than once with a chief command of ships of war, I 
cannot in honour accept of the same terms of respect. 

" You will singularly oblige me by waiting upon the Admi- 
ral ; and I ardently hope you will succeed in the application, 
else I shall be under a necessity of departing without coming 
into the bay. I have the honour to be, &c. &c. 

" To William Carmichael, Esq." 

" N. B. — Though thirteen guns is your greatest salute in 
America, yet if the French Admiral should prefer a greater 
number, he has his choice, on conditions." 

Of the triumphant recognition of the American flag obtained 
in the first instance by him, Jones was naturally very proud. 
" I am happy," he says addressing the Marine Committee at 
home, " in having it in my power to congratulate you on my 
having seen the American flag recognized in the fullest and 
completest manner by the flag of France." And he relates 
how he accomplished this object. 

On the 10th of April, Jones sailed from Brest on that cruise 
which the assault on Whitehaven, the landing at the Earl of 
Selkirk's, and the capture of the Drake, afterwards rendered 
so celebrated. The account of that expedition will be best 
given in his own words. It is, however, worthy of notice, 
that the original log-book of the Ranger, and of his more 
famous ship, the Bon Homme Richard, which are now acci- 
dentally in the hands of gentlemen in Scotland, wholly uncon- 
nected with Captain Jones, generally corroborate all his 
5* 



54 SINKING OF THE BRIGANTINE. 

statements to the most minute particulars. It is thus his ac- 
count commences : — 

11 I have now to fulfil the promise made in my last, by giv 
ing you an account of my late expedition. 

" I sailed from Brest the 10th of April ; my plan was ex 
tensive, I therefore did not at the beginning wish to encumber 
myself with prisoners. On the 14th, I took a brigantine, be- 
tween Sci'lly and Cape Clear, bound for Ostend, with a cargo 
of flax-seed for Ireland — sunk her, and proceeded into St. 
George's Channel. 




Sinking of the Brigantine. 

" On the 17th I took the ship Lord Chatham, bound from 
London to Dublin, with a cargo consisting of porter, and a 
variety of merchandise, and almost within sight of her port ; 
this ship I manned and ordered for Brest. 

" Towards the evening of the day following the weather 
nad a promising appearance, and, the wind being favourable, 
I stood over from the Isle of Man, with an intention to make 
a descent at Whitehaven ; at ten I was off the harbour with 
a party of volunteers, and had everything in readiness to 
land; but before eleven the wind greatly increased and shifted, 
so as to blow directly upon the shore ; the sea increased, of 
course, and it became impossible to effect a landing.- This 
obliged me to carry all possible sail so as to elear the land, 
<md to await a more favourable opportunity. 



THE REVENUE WHERRY. 55 

" On the 18th, in Glentinebay, on the south coast of Scot- 
land, I met with a revenue wherry ; it being the common 
practice of these vessels to board merchant ships, the Ranker 
then having no external appearance of war, it was expected 
that this rover would have come alongside ; I was, however, 
mistaken, for though the men were at their quarters, yet this 
vessel out-sailed the Ranger, and got clear in spite of a severe 
cannonade. 




Escape of the Revenue Wherry. 

" The next morning, off the Mull of Galloway, I found my 
self so near a Scotch coasting schooner, loaded with barley 
that I could not avoid sinking her. Understanding that there 
were ten or twelve sail of merchant ships, besides a Tender 
brigantine, with a number of impressed men on board, at 
anchor in Lochryan, in Scotland, I thought this an enterprise 
worthy my attention ; but the wind, which at the first would 
have served equally well to have sailed in or out of the Loch, 
shifted in a hard squall, so as to blow almost directly in, with 
an appearance of bad weather. I was therefore obliged to 
abandon my project. 

" Seeing a cutter off the lee-bow steering for the Clyde, I 
gave chase, in hopes of cutting her off, but finding my 
endeavours ineffectual. I pursued no farther than the Ruck of 



66 THE DRAKE. 

Ailsa. In the evening I fell in with a sloop from Dublin, 
which I sunk, to prevent intelligence. 

"The next day, 21st, being near Carrickfergus, a fishing- 
noat came off, which I detained. I saw a ship at anchor in 
the road, which I was informed by the fishermen was the 
British ship-of-war Drake, of twenty guns. I determined to 
attack her in the night ; my plan was to overlay her cable, 
and to fall upon her bow, so as to have all her decks open 
and exposed to our musketry, &c. ; at the same time, it was 
my intention to have secured the enemy by grapplings, so 
that, had they cut their cables, they would not thereby have 
attained an advantage. The wind was high, and unfortunately 
the anchor was not let go so soon as the order was given, so 
that the Ranger was brought to upon the enemy's quarter 
at the distance of half a cable's length. We had made no 
warlike appearance, of course had given no alarm ; this deter- 
mined me to cut immediately, which might appear as if the 
cable had parted, and at the same time enable me, after mak- 
ing a tack out of the Loch, to return with the same prospect 
of advantage which I had at the first. I was, however, pre- 
vented from returning, as I with difficulty weathered the 
light-house on the lee-side of the Loch, and as the gale 
increased. The weather now became so very stormy and 
severe, and the sea ran so high, that I was obliged to take 
shelter under the south shore of Scotland. 

" The 22d introduced fair weather, though the three king- 
doms were, as far as the eye could reach, covered with snow. 
I now resolved once more to attempt Whitehaven ; but the 
wind became very light, so that the ship would not in proper 
time approach so near as I had intended. At midnight I left 
the ship with two boats and thirty-one volunteers ; when we 
reached the outer pier, the day began to dawn ; I would not, 
however, abandon my enterprise, but despatched one boat 
under the direction of Mr. Hill and Lieutenant Wailingsford, 
with the necessary combustibles to set fire to the shioping on 



DESCENT ON WHITEHAVEN. 57 

fne north side of the harbour, while I went with the other 
party to attempt the south side. I was successful in scaling 
the walls and spiking up all the cannon on the first fort ; find- 
ing the sentinels shut up in the guard-house, they were 
secured without being hurt. Having fixed sentinels, I now 
took with me one man only, (Mr. Green,) and spiked up all 
the cannon on the southern fort, distant from the other a 
quarter of a mile. 



Expedition to Whitehaven . 



" On my return from this business, I naturally expected to 
see the fire of the ships on the mrth side, as well as to find 
my own party with everything in readiness to set fire to the 
shipping on the south ; instead of this, I found the boat under 
the direction of Mr. Hill and M. Wallingsford returned, and 
the party in some confusion, their light having burnt out at 
the instant when it became necessary.* 



* Jones did not soon surmount the disappointment occasioned by this mis- 
understanding on the part of his officers. In a memorial to Congress, he says, 
" My first object was to secure an exchange of prisoners in Europe, and my 
second to put an end, by one good fire in England of shipping, to all the burn- 
ings in America. I succeeded in the first, even by means far more glorious 
than my most flattering ideas had expected when I left France. In the second 
I endeavoured to deserve success; but a wise officer of mine observed, that 'it 
was a rash thing, and that nothing could be got by burning poor people's 



58 DESCENT ON WHITEHAVEN. 

" By the strangest fatality, my own party were in the same 
situation, the candles being all burnt out. The day too came 
on apace, yet I would by no means retreat while any hopes of 
success remained. Having again placed sentinels, a light 
was obtained at a house disjoined from the town, and fire 
was kindled in the steerage of a large ship, which was sur- 
rounded by at least an hundred and fifty others, chiefly from 
two to four hundred tons burthen, and lying side by side, 
aground, unsurrounded by the water. 

" There were, besides, from seventy to an hundred large 
ships in the north arm of the harbour, aground, clear of the 
water, and divided from the rest only by a stone pier of a 
ship's height. I should have kindled fires in other places if 
the time had permitted ; as it did not, our care was to pre- 
vent the one kindled from being easily extinguished. After 
some search, a barrel of tar was found, and poured into the 
flames, which now ascended from all the hatchways. The 
inhabitants began to appear in thousands, and individuals ran 
hastily towards us. I stood between them and the ship on 
fire, with a pistol in my hand, and ordered them to retire, 
which they did with precipitation. The flames had already 
caught the rigging, and began to ascend the main-mast ; the 
the sun was a full hour's march above the horizon, and as 
sleep no longer ruled the world, it was time to retire. We 

property.' I must, however, do him the justice to mention his acknowledg- 
ment, that he had no turn for enterprise ; and I must also do equal justice to 
my former officers in the Providence and the Alfred, by declaring, that had 
they been with me in the Ranger, two hundred and fifty, or three hundred sail 
of large ships at Whitehaven would have been laid in ashes." In answer to 
certain queries on this subject, proposed by the Board of Admiralty in 1781. 
he says, " I made a descent at Whitehaven with thirty men only, surprised 
and took two strong forts with thirty pieces of cannon, and set fire to the ship 
ping where they lay, three hundred or upwards, in the dry pier. That both 
the shipping and the town, containing from forty to fifty thousand inhabitants, 
tvas not burned, was owing to the backwardness of some persons under my 
command." 




«I 



' ;!;|: ill Mi 11 



(fi()> 



DESCENT ON WHITEHAVEN. 61 

re-embarked without opposition, having released a number 
of prisoners, as our boats could not carry them. After all 
my people had embarked, I stood upon the pier for a consi- 
derable space, yet no person advanced : I saw all the emi- 
nences round the town covered with the amazed inhabitants. 

" When we had rowed to a considerable distance from the 
shore, the English began to run in vast numbers to their forts ; 
their disappointment may easily be imagined when (hey found, 
I suppose, at least thirty heavy cannon (the instruments of 
their vengeance) rendered useless. At length, however, they 
began to fire, having, as I apprehend, either brought down 
ship's guns, or used one or two cannon which lay on the 
beach at the foot of the walls, dismounted, and which had hot 
been spiked. They fired with no direction, and the shot fall- 
ing short of the boats, instead of doing us any damage, 
afforded some diversion, which my people could not help 
showing, by discharging their pistols, &c. in return of the 
salute. 

" Had it been possible to have landed a few hours sooner, 
success would have been complete ; no: a single ship out of 
more than two hundred could possibly have escaped, and all 
the world would not have been able to save the town ; what 
was done, however, is sufficient to show that not all their 
boasted navy can protect their own coasts, and that the scenes 
of distress which they have occasioned in America may soon 
be brought home to their own doors. One of my people was 
missing, and must, I fear, have fallen into the enemy's hands 
after our departure.* I was pleased that in this business we 
neither killed nor wounded. I brought off three prisoners as 
a sample." 



* In the Ranger's log-book this man is named David Smith. He is probably 
the same person who, under the name of Freeman, gave information at several 
houses in a street adjoining the piers, that fire had been set to a ship, and 
aflervi ards other information that appears substantially correct. He must have 
remuined on shore voluntarily. 



52 DESCENT ON ST. MARY'S ISLE. 

In nil the contemporary accounts of the attempt on Witite- 
haven, and capture of the Drake, the Ranger is termed a 
privateer. This is a mistake; she was a ship of war belong- 
ing to the United States, and Jones was appointed her com- 
mander by a resolution of Congress on the 14th of June, 1777. 
The character of this vessel was, however, certainly anoma- 
lous in any regular navy. Her commander acted alone and 
single-handed ; and such was his temper and the nature of 
the service for which he seemed most fitted, that he uniformly 
succeeded best when acting thus on his own judgment and 
responsibility, and never wholly failed, save in those combined 
operations where his opinions were opposed or fettered. 
With the unlimited command of the Ranger, and small as his 
force was, he determined to prove to France and America 
what, with adequate means placed at his disposal, he might 
achieve. But it is time to return to the narrative of this 
cruise, which resembled more the bold exploits of Morgan or 
Lolonnois than the operations of modern nautical warfare. 



Descent on St Mary's Isle. 



ENCOUNTER WITH THE DRAKE. 63 

" We now stood over for the Scotch shore, and landed at 
noon on St. Mary's Isle, with one boat only, and a very small 
party, (twelve men.) The motives wmich induced me to land 
there are explained in the within copy of a letter* which I 
have written to the Countess of Selkirk. 

" On the morning of the 24th I was again off Carrickfergus, 
and would have gone in had I not seen the Drake preparing 
to come out ; it was very moderate, and the Drake's boat was 
sent out to reconnoitre the Ranger. As the boat advanced I 
kept the ship's stern directly towards her, and, though they 
had a spy-glass in the boat, they came on within hail, and 
alongside. When the officer came on the quarter-deck, he 
was greatly surprised to find himself a prisoner! — although 
an express had arrived from Whitehaven the night before. I 
now understood what I had before imagined, that the Drake 
came out in consequence of this information with volunteers 
against the Ranger. The officer told me also, that they had 
taken up the Ranger's anchor. 

" The Drake was attended by five small vessels full of 
people, w r ho were led by motives of curiosity to see an 
engagement ; but when they discovered the Drake's boat at 
the Ranger's stern they wisely put back. Alarm-smokes 
now appeared in great abundance, extending along both sides 
of the channel. The tide was unfavourable, so that the 
Drake worked out but slowly. This obliged me to run down 
several times, and to lay with courses up, and main-topsail 
to the mast. At length the Drake weathered the point, and 
having led her out to about mid-channel, I suffered her to 
come within hail. The Drake hoisted English colours, and 
at the same instant the American stars were displayed on 
board the Ranger. I expected that preface had been now at 
an end ; but the enemy soon after hailed, demanding what 
ship it was. I directed the master to answer, the American 
continental shij. Ranger; that we waited for them, and desired 

* See page 68. 



64 ACTION WITH THE DRAKE. 

they would come on. The sun was now little more than an 
hour from setting, it was therefore time to begin. The Drake 
being rather astern of the Ranger, I ordered the helm up, 
and gave her the first broadside. The action was warm, 
close, and obstinate ; it lasted an hour and five minutes, when 
the enemy called for quarters, her fore and main-top-sail 
yards being both cut away, and down on the cap; ihe fore- 
top-gallant-yard and mizen-gaff both hanging up and down 
along the mast ; the second ensign which they had hoisted 
shot away, and hanging over the quarter-gallery, in the water ; 
the jib shot away, and hanging into the water ; her sails and 
rigging entirely cut to pieces, her masts and yards all 
wounded, and her hull also very much galled. 




rsBBammfc 

Action between the Ranger and the Drake. 



"1 lost only Lieutenant Wallingsford, and o .. aucman 
(John Dongal) killed, and six wounded, among whom are the 
gunner, (Mr. Falls,) and Mr. Powers, a midshipman, who 
lost his arm. One of the wounded (Nathaniel Wills) is since 
dead ; the rest will recover. 



ACTION WITH THE DRAKE 65 

ik The loss of the enemy in killed and wounded was far 
greater. All the prisoners allow that they came out with a 
number not less than an hundred and sixty men, and many of 
them affirm that they amounted to an hundred and ninety ; the 
medium may perhaps be the most exact account, and by that 
it will appear that, they lost in killed and wounded forty- 
two men.* 

" The captain and lieutenant were among the wounded ; 
the former, having received a musket ball in the head the 
minute before they called for quarters, lived and was sensible 
for some time after my people boarded the prize ; the lieu- 
tenant survived two days. They were buried with the 
honours due to their rank, and with the respect due to their 
memory. 

" The night, and almost the whole day after the action, 
being moderate, greatly facilitated the refitting of the ships. 
A large brigantine ran so near the Drake in the afternoon, 
that I was obliged to bring her to : she belonged to White- 
haven, and was bound to Norway. 

" I had thoughts of returning by the south channel, but the 
wind shifting, I determined to pass by the north, and round 
the west coast of Ireland : this brought me once more off 
Belfast Loch on the evening of the day after the engagement. 

" It was now time to release the honest Irishmen whom I 
took here on the 21st : and as the poor fellows had lost their 
boat, she having sunk in the late stormy weather, I was happy 
in having it in my power to give them the necessary sum to 
purchase everything new which they had lost ; I gave them 
also a good boat to transport themselves ashore, and sent 
with them two infirm men, on whom I had bestowed the last 
guinea in my possession, to defray their travelling expenses 
to their proper home at Dublin. They took with them one 
of the Drake's sails, which would sufficiently explain what 



* This loss is stated by the other party at twenty-two. 
6* 



(30 RELEASE OF THE IRISHMEN. 

had happened to the volunteers. The grateful Irishmen were 
enraptured and expressed their joy in three huzzas as they 
passed the Ranger's quarter." 



Release of the Irishmen. 



On the 26th April, Captain Jones placed Lieutenant Simp- 
son under suspension and arrest ; and on the 8th May he re- 
entered Brest, roads, having been absent only twenty-eight- 
days.* 

If the American plenipotentiaries were gratified by the 

* The worthy and cautions citizens of Aberdeen were the only persons 
greatly alarmed on this occasion. In the Scots Magazine for May, 1778, we 
find the following paragraph : 

" On receiving at Aberdeen intelligence of the plunder of Lord Selkirk's 
house and the landing at Whitehaven, a hand-bill was circulated by order of 
the Magistrates, to set on foot an association of the inhabitants for defence, 
and in a few days an hundred and twenty were enrolled." 

The affair never went farther. Another American vessel, which landed a 
party, and plundered the house bf Mr. Gordon, near Banff, must have quick- 
ened their apprehensions ; but no alarm was seriously felt till the squadron of 
Paul Jones appeared in the frith of Forth. Even then the panic was phort 
lived. 



LETTER TO THE COUNTESS OF SELKIRK. 67 

success of this expedition, the Court of Versailles was still 
more delighted. France was now on the very eve of war. 
The plenipotentiaries of the United States had been publicly 
received at Versailles a month before — the treaty had been 
signed — and D'Estaing's squadron was ready for sea. The 
French ambassador had been ordered to leave London, and 
by the famous engagement between the Arethusa and La 
Belle Poule the first blow had been struck. In England the 
nation, much divided on the policy of the unsuccessful war 
with the colonies, were for the first time united in feelings of 
hostility to the " ancient foe," and of indignation at the insidi- 
ous policy of the court of Versailles. The most active pre- 
parations were going on throughout the whole of the three 
kingdoms. AH the winter and spring, in anticipation of a 
war with France, volunteer corps, defensive bands, and fen- 
cible regiments, had been raising ; the navy was hastily aug- 
mented ; addresses were sent from all quarters of the country ; 
and the bulk of the nation was animated by the most ardent 
spirit of loyalty. 

The first leisure of Captain Jones on arriving at Brest was 
employed in writing his celebrated letter to the Countess of 
Selkirk. His conduct throughout the whole of this delicate 
affair, though certainly on his part the spontaneous impulse 
of elevated feeling, was also good policy, as the descent on 
St. Mary's Isle, which ultimately redounded to his honour, 
was liable to much misrepresentation. The explanatory 
chivalrous epistle to the Countess of Selkirk has been often 
talked of. It represents the character of the writer in a new 
and certainly not unpleasing light. How seldom does the 
romance of real life exist till the age of thirty ! 

But however romantic one class of the feelings of Jones 
might be, awakened and softened by his visit to the scenes 
of his boyhood, under circumstances so extraordinary, he 
was still much more at home in drawing up a clear memorial 
of his proceedings for Congress, or in bringing to a tardv 



08 LETTER TO THE COUNTESS OF SELKIRK. 

and shuffling minister, than in addressing high-born dames. 
Though he had been a few weeks in Paris, the airs of a 
carpet-knight still sat awkwardly upon him, and his letter 
evinces more right feeling than good taste or knowledge of 
lady-life. But Franklin, the republican sage, to whom the 
epistle was enclosed, says, " It is a gallant letter, which must 
give her Ladyship a high and just opinion of your generosity 
and nobleness of mind ;" — and he was right. The mattei 
was admirable, whatever might be the faults of style. Had 
the same generous spirit of hostility been displayed through- 
out, how much of human misery, wantonly inflicted, might 
have been spared, — how much of that bitterness of feeling 
engendered between countries having in common so many 
powerful bonds of alliance, might have been prevented ! 

"Ranger, Brest, 8th May, 1778. 

" Madam, 

" It cannot be too much lamented, that, in the profession 
of arms, the officer of fine feelings and real sensibility should 
be under the necessity of winking at any action of persons 
under his command which his heart cannot approve ; but the 
reflection is doubly severe, when he finds himself obliged, in 
appearance, to countenance such acts by his authority. 

" This hard case was mine, when, on the 23d of April last, 
[ landed on St. Mary's Isle. Knowing Lord Selkirk's interest 
with the King, and esteeming, as I do, his private character, 
( wished to make him the happy instrument of alleviating the 
horrors of hopeless captivity, when the brave are overpowered 
and made prisoners of war. 

" It was, perhaps, fortunate for you, Madam, that he was 
from home ; for it was my intention to have taken him on 
board the Ranger, ana to have detained him, until, through 
his means, a general and fair exchange of prisoners, as well 
in Europe as in America, had been effected. When I was 
informed oy some men whom I met at landing, that his Lord- 



LETTER TO THE COUNTESS OF SELKIRK. 69 

ship was absent, I walked back to my boat, determined to 
leave the island. By the way, however, some officers, who 
were with me, could not forbear expressing their discontent, 
observing that, in America, no delicacy was shown by 
the English, who took away all sorts of moveable property, 
setting fire, not only to towns and to the houses of the rich, 
without distinction, but not even sparing the wretched ham- 
lets and milch-cows of the poor and helpless, at the approach 
of an inclement winter. That party had been with me the 
same morning at Whitehaven ; some complaisance, therefore, 
was their due. I had but a moment to think how I might 
gratify them, and at the same time do your Ladyship the least 
injury. I charged the officers to permit none of the seamen 
to enter the house, or to hurt anything about it ; to treat you, 
Madam, with the utmost respect ; to accept of the plate which 
was offered, and to come away without making a search, oi 
demanding anything else. 

" I am induced to believe that I was punctually obeyed 
since I am informed that the plate which they brought away 
is far short of the quantity expressed in the inventory which 
accompanied it. I have gratified my men ; and, when the 
plate is sold, I shall become the purchaser, and will gratify 
my own feelings by restoring it to you by such conveyance 
as you shall please to direct. 

" Had the Earl been on board the Ranger the following 
evening, he would have seen the awful pomp and dreadful 
carnage of a sea-engagement ; both affording ample subject 
for the pencil as well as melancholy reflection for the con- 
templative mind. Humanity starts back from such scenes 
of horror, **nd cannot sufficiently execrate the vile promoters 
of this detestable war — 

* For &4v. 't \ras they, unsheathed the ruthless blade, 
And Heaven shall ask t^e have* it n^? made.' 

" The British ship of war Drakv, mounting *wentv guns 



70 LETTER TO THE COUNTESS OF SELKIRK. 

with more than her full complement of officers and men, was 
our opponent. The ships met, and the advantage was disputed 
with great fortitude on each side for an hour and four min- 
utes, when the gallant commander of the Drake fell, and vic- 
tory declared in favour of the Ranger. The amiable lieuten- 
ant lay mortally wounded, besides near forty of the inferior 
officers and crew killed and wounded, — a melancholy demon 
stration of the uncertainty of human prospects, and of the sad 
reverse of fortune which an hour can produce. I buried 
them in a spacious grave, with the honours due to the me- 
mory of the brave. 

" Though I have drawn my sw 7 ord in the present generous 
struggle for the rights of men, yet I am not in arms as an 
American, nor am I in pursuit of riches. My fortune is liberal 
enough, having no wife nor family, and having lived long 
enough to know that riches cannot ensure happiness. I pro- 
fess myself a citizen of the world, totally unfettered by the 
little, mean distinctions of climate or of country, which 
diminish the benevolence of the heart, and set bounds to phi- 
lanthropy. Before this war began I had at the early time of 
life withdrawn from the sea-service in favour of ' calm con- 
templation and poetic ease.' I have sacrificed not only my 
favourite scheme of life, but the softer affections of the heart 
and my prospects of domestic happiness, and I am ready to 
sacrifice my life also with cheerfulness, if that forfeiture could 
restore peace and good-will among mankind. 

" As the feelings of your gentle bosom cannot but be con- 
genial with mine, let me entreat you, Madam, to use your 
persuasive art with your husband's to endeavour to stop this 
cruel and destructive war, in which Britain can never sue* 
ceed. Heaven can never countenance the barbarous and 
unmanly practice of the Britons in America, which savages 
would blush at, and which, if not discontinued, will soon be 
retaliated on Britain by a justly-enraged people. Should you 
fail in this, (for I am persuaded that you will attempt it, and 



LETTER TO THE COUNTESS OF SELKIRK. 71 

who can resist the power of such an advocate ?) your endea- 
vours to effect a general exchange of prisoners will be an 
act of humanity which will afford you golden feelings on a 
death-bed. 

" I hope this cruel contest will soon be closed ; but should 
it continue, I wage no war with the fair. I acknowledge 
their force, and bend before it with submission. Let not 
therefore, the amiable Countess of Selkirk regard me as an 
enemy; I am ambitious of her esteem and friendship, and 
would do anything, consistent with my duty, to merit it. 

" The honour of a line from your hand in answer to this 
will lay me under a singular obligation ; and if I can render 
you any acceptable service in France or elsewhere, I hope 
you see into my character so far as to command me without 
the least grain of reserve. * 

" I wish to know exactly the behaviour of my people, as I 
am determined to punish them if they have exceeded their 
liberty. I have the honour to be, with much esteem and with 
profound respect, Madam, &c. &c. 

" John Paul Jones. 
" To the Countess of Selkirk." 

It afterwards cost Jones much more trouble than he could 
have calculated upon to redeem the promise here given to 
the Countess of Selkirk. Once in the harpy claws of com- 
missaries and prize-agents, it required all his energy, activity, 
and disinterestedness, to wrest the plate from them, even by 
paying, he says, " more than the value." It was valued and 
re-valued, and occasioned more trouble and expense than it 
was intrinsically worth, had not Jones conceived his honour 
pledged for its safe restoration. 

Jones found a useful auxiliary in this affair in Father John, 
an Irish priest, the chaplain of Count D'Orvilliers, who then 
commanded a fleet lying off Brest, and whom he had already 
made his friend. So justly provoked was he about this affair, 
and the sordid spirit of the agents, that, in the very temper 



72 REDEMPTION OF THE PLATE, 

of Hotspur, we find him exclaiming, " I will not abate the 
thousandth part of a sol of three-twentieths of prizes, which 
no man in America ever presumed to dispute as being my 
just and proper right, and which no rascal in Europe shall 
presume to dispute with impunity ! To whom, since I was 
myself commander-in-chief, would that old fool decree the 
three-twentieths 1 Perhaps to his dear self, who is puffed up 
with the idea of his right to secure * the property of captures?' " 
Though the plate came into the possession of Jones in 
1780, it was nearly five years before he was able to return it 
to the owner. It was lodged with a friend during his absence 
in America ; and in writing to Lord Selkirk in 1784, after the 
peace, he takes occasion to make a new avowal of the views 
and sentiments on which he had acted during the war : — 

Paris, February 12th, 1784. 
w My Lord, 

"I have just received a letter from Mr. Nesbitt, dated at 
L'Orient the 4th instant, mentioning a letter to him from 
your son, Lord Daer, on the subject of the plate that was 
taken from your house by some of my people when I com- 
manded the Ranger, and has been for a long time past in 
Mr. Nesbitt's care. A short time before I left France to 
return to America, Mr. W. Alexander wrote me from 
Paris to L'Orient, that he had, at my request, seen and con- 
versed with your Lordship in England respecting the plate. 
He said that you had agreed that I should restore it, and that 
it might be forwarded to the care of your sister-in-law, the 
Countess of Morton, in London. In consequence I now send 
orders to Mr. Nesbitt, to forward the plate immediately to 
her care. When I received Mr. Alexander's letter, there 
was no cartel or other vessel at L'Orient, that I could trust 
with a charge of so delicate a nature as your plate, and 1 
had great reason to expect I should return to France within 
six months after I embarked for America ; but circumstances 
in America prevented my returning to Europe during the 



LETTER TO LORD SELKIRK. 73 

war, though I had constant expectation of it. The long 
delay that has happened to the restoration of >our plate has 
given me much concern, and I now feel a proportionate 
pleasure in fulfilling what was my first intention. My motive 
for landing at your estate in Scotland was to take you as an 
hostage for the lives and liberty of a number of the citizens 
of America, who had been taken in war on the ocean, and 
committed to British prisons, under an act of parliament, as 
traitors, pirates, and felons. You observed to Mr. Alexander, 
that ' my idea was a mistaken one, because you were not, 
(as I had supposed) in favour with the British ministry, who 
knew that you favoured the cause of liberty? On that account 
I am glad that you were absent from your estate when I 
landed there, as I bore no personal enmity, but the contrary, 
towards you. I afterwards had the happiness to redeem my 
fellow-citizens from Britain, by means far more glorious than 
through the medium of any single hostage. 

" As I have endeavoured to serve the cause of liberty, 
through every stage of the American revolution, and sacri- 
ficed to it my private ease, a part of my fortune, and some 
of my blood, I could have no selfish motive in permitting my 
people to demand and carry off your plate. My sole induce- 
ment was to turn their attention and stop their rage from 
breaking out, and retaliating on your house and effects the 
too wanton burnings and desolation that had been committed 
against their relations and fellow-citizens in America by the 
British ; of which, I assure, you would have felt the severe 
consequences had I not fallen on an expedient to prevent it, 
and hurried my people away before they had time for farther 
reflection. As you were so obliging as to say to Mr. Alex- 
ander, that * my people behaved with great decency at your 
house/ I ask the favour of you to announce that circumstance 
to the public. 

" I am, my Lord, wishing you always perfect freedom and 
happiness," &c. &c. 

7 " Paul Jones/ 



74 THE EARL'S ANSWER. 

The answer that Jones received next year from the Earl 
was some indemnification for his trouble and anxiety: — 

" Lonih)n, 4th August, 1785. 

" Sir, 

" I received the letter you wrote me at the time you sent 
off my plate, in order for restoring it. Had I known where 
to direct a letter to you at the time it arrived in Scotland, I 
would have then wrote to you ; but not knowing it, nor find- 
ing that any of my acquaintance at Edinburgh knew it, I was 
obliged to delay writing till I came here, when, by means of 
a gentleman connected with America, I was told Mr. Le 
Grand was your banker at Paris, and would take proper care 
of a letter for you ; therefore I enclose this to him. 

" Notwithstanding all the precautions you took for the easy 
and uninterrupted conve}^ance of the plate, yet it met with 
considerable delays, first at Calais, next at Dover, then at 
London. However, it at last arrived at Dumfries, and, I 
dare say, quite safe, though as yet I have not seen it, being 
then at Edinburgh. I intended to have put an article in the 
newspapers about your having returned it ; but before I was 
informed of its being arrived, some of your friends, I suppose, 
had put it in the Dumfries newspaper, whence it was imme- 
diately copied into the Edinburgh papers, and thence into the 
London ones. 

" Since that time I have mentioned it to many people of 
fashion ; and on all occasions, Sir, both now and formerly, I 
have done you the justice to tell, that you made an offer of 
returning the plate very soon after your return to Brest, and 
although you yourself were not at my house, but remained at 
the shore with your boat, that yet you had your officers and 
men in such extraordinary good discipline, that you having 
given them the strictest orders to behave w r ell, to do no injury 
of any kind, to make no search, but only to bring off what 
elate was given them ; that in reality they did exactly as 



THE EARL'S ANSWER. 75 

older ed, and that not one man offered to stir from his post, 
on the outside of the house, nor entered the doors, nor said an 
uncivil word ; that the two officers stood not a quarter of an 
hour in the parlour and butler's pantry while the butler got 
the plate together ; behaved politely, and asked for nothing 
but the plate, and instantly marched their men off in regular 
order ; and that both officers and men behaved in all respects 
so well, that it would have done credit to the best-disciplined 
troops whatever. Some of the English newspapers at that 
time having put in confused accounts of your expedition to 
Whitehaven and Scotland, I ordered a proper one of what 
happened in Scotland to be put in the London newspapers, 
by a gentleman who was then at my house, by which the 
good conduct and civil behaviour of your officers and men 
were done justice to, and attributed to your orders, and the 
good discipline you maintained over your people. 
" I am, Sir, your most humble servant, 

" Selkirk." 

The plate was returned exactly as it had been taKen 
away. 




70 



CONDUCT OF THE COMMISSIONERS 




CHAPTER IV. 



HE success of Jones, and the 
temporary vogue into which it 
raised him at the court of 
| France on his return to Brest, 
did not free him from many 
embarrassments. To provide 
I for his crew, to secure the 
| two hundred prisoners he had 
brought in, and to obtain a new 
command for himself, all occupied and distracted his atten- 
tion at the same time. The dilatoriness or cupidity of the 
prize-agents, and the straitened funds at the disposal of the 
Commissioners, excited open discontents among the seamen, 
— who, after their exertions, saw themselves neglected and 
forgotten, and even in want of the common necessaries of 
food and clothing. Captain Jones had now obtained the right 
of speaking out, and also of being heard ; and he used his 
newly-acquired influence with equal anxiety for the comfort 
of his own men, and of the sick, wounded, and prisoners 
whom the fortune of war had placed at his mercy. 

Before quitting America, Jones had, under the sanction of 
the Marine Committee, made himself accountable to his 
crew for the regular payment of their wages. With this 
circumstance Mr. Lee, one of the Commissioners, who after- 
wards gave both of his own colleagues much trouble, was 
acquainted ; yet he concurred with those who were in igno- 
rance of this arrangement in dishonouring a draft which 
Jones made on the Commissioners on his return to Brest 



JONES PROTECTS HIS PRISONERS. 77 

under circumstances which should have compelled them to 
attend to his wants, in humanity and good policy as well as 
justice. " I was left," he says, " with two hundred prisoners 
of war, a number of sick and wounded, an almost naked 
crew, and a ship, after a severe engagement, in want of 
stores and provisons, from the 9th May till the 13th of June, 
destitute of any public support." " To make me completely 
wretched," he says, on another occasion, " M. de Bersolie 
has told me that he now stops his hand, not only of the 
necessary articles to refit the ship, but also of the daily provi- 
sions. I know not where to find to-morrow's dinner for the 
great number of mouths that depend on me for food. Are 
the continental ships of war to depend on the sale of their 
prizes for a daily dinner to their men 1 Publish it not in Gath !" 

But from all these pressing difficulties Jones contrived to 
extricate himself with little aid, in the first instance, from the 
harassed Commissioners, who, at this time, had their hands 
full of business, and their purses empty of money. 

Shortly afterwards we find Captain Jones interfering to 
protect his prisoners from the rapacity of the persons who 
were intrusted with supplying their wants. By his exertions 
and credit with the French goverment and its functionaries, 
he had already ensured their safe custody in order to an 
exchange, — an object for which Franklin was now negotia- 
ting, and which at all times was one of prime importance to 
Jones, as appears on the face of his whole correspondence. 
The letter enclosing the memorial of his prisoners is very 
creditable to his feelings. 

V The fellow," he says, " who holds the rod over their 
wretched heads, has menaced them ' if they dare to com- 
plain,' and would have intercepted their memorial, ha4 I not 
prevented it. This Riou is the scoundrel who, by his false- 
hood, promoted discord in the Ranger, and got the deluded 
people to appoint him their particular agent. Before that 
time he never could call twenty louis his own. — and he is 
7* 



78 JONES'S LETTER TO THE FRENCH OFFICERS. 

now too rich for his former profession of King's interpreter. 
He does not deny that he is a scoundrel, for so I have called 
him more than once before witnesses, and so every person of 
sense thinks him at Brest. If the exchange of prisoners does 
not take place immediately, I conceive it would be the most 
eligible method to have the people on boajd the Patience 
landed. They are convinced that if you should think fit to 
return them an answer, it will never come to their hands 
through the means of any person who calls himself an agent 
at Brest, and they having full confidence in the honour and 
humanity of Father John, professor of English, and chaplain 
to Comte D'Orvilliers at Brest, have desired me to inform 
you, that through that gentleman they beg you to favour 
them with an answer. In granting their request you will 
confer a very singular obligation on me." 

Though Jones had just cause of anger in the hardship and 
indignity to which he was exposed by the Commissioners 
dishonouring his drafts, and in the conduct of the prize-agents, 
and the discontents which in consequence arose among his 
crew, who naturally all looked to him for justice, if not 
reward, he was cheered by many marks of private friendship 
and esteem. The Comte D'Orvilliers, commander-in-chief 
at Brest, showed him the utmost kindness, untinctured by any 
of that professional jealousy with which he was afterwards 
regarded by the horde of inferior officers of the French navy. 
The Due de Chartres seemed friendly ; and, above all, the 
wise and venerable Franklin, who, from first to last, appears 
to have appreciated his character, proved a friend as steady 
as he was judicious. 

Jones had not been three weeks in Brest when Franklin 
wrote him, congratulating him on his late success, and pro- 
posing another expedition. " The Jersey privateers," he 
says, " do us a great deal of mischief by intercepting our 
supplies. It has been mentioned to me, that your small ves- 
sel, commanded by so brave an officer, might render great 



DR. FRANKLIN'S PROPOSAL. 79 

service, by following them where greater ships dare not ven- 
ture their bottoms ; or, being accompanied and supported by 
some frigates from Brest, at a proper distance, might draw 
them out and then take them. I wish you to consider of 
this, as it comes from high authority" 

To be made the decoy-duck of French frigates could not 
be peculiarly agreeable to a man whose first and vehement 
object at all times was a " separate command," "unlimited 
orders," and to be his " own counsellor." Yet in reply he says, 
" Nothing could give me more pleasure than to render essen- 
tial service to America in any way which you may find 
expedient." He then hints his desire of still obtaining the 
command of the ship building at Amsterdam. " I demand 
nothing," he adds, " and though I know that it was the inten- 
tion of Congress to give me that ship, I am now ready to go 
wherever the service calls me." " If two or three fast-sailing 
ships could be collected together, there is a great choice of 
-private enterprises that I can name, some of. which might 
effectually succeed, and would be far more for the interest 
and honour of America than cruising with twice the force. 
It appears to me to be the province of our infant navy to 
surprise and spread alarms with fast-sailing ships. When we 
grow stronger we can meet their [the British] fleets, and dis- 
pute with them the sovereignty of the ocean." 

These plans and speculations were forgotten in the more 
dazzling prospects which the following letter from Franklin 
opened to Jones ; though what at first promised so fair, after- 
wards became to him the source of much trouble and vexa- 
tion : — 

(Private.) 
" Dear Sir, 

" I have the pleasure of informing you, that it is proposed 
to give you the command of the great ship we have built al 
Amsterdam. By what you wrote to us formerly I hava 



80 DR. FRANKLIN'S LETTER. 

ventured to say in your behalf, that this proposition would be 
agreeable to you. You will immediately let me know your 
resolution ; which, that you may be more clear in taking, I 
must inform you of some circumstances. She is at present 
the property of the king ; but as there is no war yet declared, 
you will have the commission and flag of the States, and act 
under their orders and laws. The Prince de Nassau will 
make the cruise with you. She is to be brought here under 
cover as a French merchantman, to be equipped and manned 
in France. We hope to exchange your prisoners for as 
many American sailors ; but if that fails, you have your pre- 
sent crew to be made up here with other nations and French. 
The other Commissioners are not acquainted with this propo- 
sition as yet ; and you see by the nature of it, that it neces- 
sary to be kept a secret till we have got the vessel here, for 
fear of difficulties in Holland, and interception; you will 
therefore direct your answer to me alone. It being desired 
that the affair should rest between you and me, perhaps it 
may be best for you to take a trip up here to concert matters, 
if in general you approve the idea. 

" I was much pleased with reading your journal, which we 
received yesterday." 

A few days after this, Franklin had this affair so well ma- 
tured as to write again in the following terms : 

"Passy, June 10th, 1778. 
" Dear Sir, 

" I received yours of 1st instant, with the papers enclosed, 
which I have shown to the other Commissioners, but have 
not yet had their opinion of them ; only I know that they had 
before (in consideration of the disposition and uneasiness of 
your people) expressed an inclination to order your ship 
directly back to America. You will judge from what follow? 
whether it will not be advisable for you to propose their send- 



FRANKLIN'S LETTER. 81 

ing her back with her people, and under some other command. 
In consequence of the high opinion the Minister of the Marine 
has of your conduct and bravery, it is now settled (observe, 
that is to be a secret between us, I being expressly enjoined 
not to communicate it to any other person,) that you are to 
have the frigate from Holland, which actually belongs to 
government, and will be furnished with as many good French 
seamen as you shall require. But you are to act under Con- 
gress commission. As you may like to have a number of 
Americans, and your own are home-sick, it is proposed to 
give you as many as you can engage out of two hundred 
prisoners, which the ministry of Britain have at length agreed 
to give us in exchange for those you have in your hands. 
They propose to make the exchange at Calais, where they are 
to bring the Americans. Nothing is wanting to this but a list 
of yours, containing their names and rank ; immediately on the 
receipt of which an equal number are to be prepared, and 
sent in a ship to that port, where yours are to meet them. 

" If by this means you can get a good new crew, I think it 
would be best that you are quite free of the old ; for a mix- 
ture might introduce the infection of that sickness you com- 
plain of. But this may be left to your own discretion. Per- 
haps we shall join you with the Providence. Captain Whipple, 
a new continental ship of 30 guns, which in coming out of the 
river of Providence, gave the two frigates that were posted 
to intercept her each of them so heavy a dose of her 18 and 
12 pounders, that they had not the courage, or were not able, 
to pursue her. It seems to be desired that you will step up 
to Versailles, (where one will meet you,) in order to such a 
settlement of matters and plans with those who have the di- 
rection as cannot well be done by letter. I wish it may be 
convenient to you to do it immediately. 

" The project of giving you the command of this ship 
pleases me the more, as it is a probable opening to the highe r 
preferment you so justly merit." 



82 LETTER TO THE FRENCH MINISTER. 

Jones must have been exceedingly gratified by this infor- 
mation. It was placing him at once at the summit of his 
wishes. The French Minister of Marine notified the wishes 
of his Most Christian Majesty to employ the American cap- 
tain; and the Commissioners as formally signified their 
acquiescence. They say, " We readily consent that he should 
be at your Excellency's disposition, and shall be happy if his 
services may be in any respect useful to the designs your Ex- 
cellency has in contemplation." 

Though Jones had already some experience of Marine 
Committees, and of the delays and insolence of office, it was 
quite impossible that he could have anticipated all the torture 
and vexation laid up in store for him by a proposal which at 
first sight appeared so fair and flattering. He made his ac- 
knowledgments to the minister in his best style ; but probably 
thought less of the " dignity of human nature," the slang of 
that day, long before all official connexion was finished 
between them. " I have no doubt," he says, " that many 
projects might be formed from the hints which I had the 
honour of sending lately for your inspection : had I been in- 
trusted with the chief command, I would have held myself 
responsible for consequences." 

" I am bound in honour to communicate faithfully to Con- 
gress the generous offer which the King now makes, of lend- 
ing the Epervier in the meantime to be employed under my 
command, under the flag of America. I have now under my 
command a ship bound to America. On my arrival there, 
from the former confidence of Congress, I have reason to 
expect an immediate removal into one of their best ships. I 
have reason to expect the chief command of the first squadron 
destined for an expedition, having in my possession several 
similar appointments ; and when Congress see fit to appoint 
admirals, I have assurance that my name will not be forgot. 
These are flattering prospects to a man who has drawn his 
sword only upon principles of philanthropy, and in support of 



BOLD PROJECTS. S3 

the dignity of human nature. But as I prefer a solid to a 
shining reputation, a useful to a splendid command, I hold 
myself ready, with the approbation of the Commissioners, to 
be governed by you in any measures that may tend to distress 
and humble the common enemy." 

This letter, in several of its hints, shows some address on 
the part of Jones, who, it must be acknowledged, seldom, un- 
less stirred by indignation or a sense of injury, slipped the 
opportunity of forwarding his own interests by an opportune 
hint or leading suggestion : of hints and projects of a public 
nature his brain was at all times singularly fertile. At this 
moment of excitement it teemed with bold ideas or fancies. 
To effect the destruction of Whitehaven was, as we have seen, 
one project. To take the Bank of Ayr, destroy that town, 
and probably Greenock and Port-Glasgow, with the shipping 
in the Clyde, was a yet bolder design. " Much," he says, 
" might be done in Ireland, where ships worth one hundred 
and fifty thousand livres, or even two hundred thousand, might 
be seized,— London might be distressed, by cutting off the 
supply of coals carried from Newcastle,— the fishing at 
Campbelton might be destroyed, and many town? on the 
north-east coasts of England and Scotland might be burnt or 
laid under contribution." A more feasible project was the 
capture or destruction of the Baltic fleet. " The access of 
any of these, or of like enterprises," says Jones, m n Letter to 
the French Minister of Marine, "will depend in surprising 
well, and on despatch both in the attack and in the retreat : 
therefore it is necessary the ships should sail fc U, and that 
their forces should be sufficient to repel any of ho enemy's 
cruising frigates, two of which may perhaps be m A a', a time. 
It is scarcely conceivable how great a panic th< aucxess of 
any one of these projects would occasion in 1 i?;l t«d. It 
would convince the world that their coasts are -jlnembl?, 
md would, consequently, hurt their public credit 



D4 LIEUTENANT SIMPSON 

"If alarming the coast oi" Britain should be thought inex- 
pedient, to intercept the enemy's West India or Baltic fit 
or their Hudson's Bay ships, or to destroy their Greenland 
fishery, are capital objects." 

There is much in these plans that must either have been 
conceived in ignorance, or suggested by Jones for the pur- 
pose of merely amusing, or of quickening the motions of the 
French marine department. Even when, long afterwards, a 
force was obtained, not one of them was attempted save the 
abortive attack on Leith. 

It has been noticed, that, after the engagement with the 
Drake, Captain Jones ordered Lieutenant Simpson under 
arrest for what appeared very satisfactory reasons. He had 
afterwards been annoyed by the Commissioners' dishonouring 
his draft, and he was now enraged by their conduct regard- 
ing Simpson, the offending officer. Indeed no excuse can be 
offered for their proceedings, save that these distracted Com 
missioners had not power at all times to administer rigid jus- 
tice, whatever might have been their wishes. The account 
of this proceeding is given in the words of the memorial, 
long afterwards prepared by Captain Jones for the informa- 
tion of the King of France. It was an insult the memory of 
which did not soon leave him. 

" The lieutenant under arrest on board the Drake had con- 
stant intercourse with the crew ; who thereby became so 
insolent as to refuse duty, and go all hands below repeatedly 
before the captain's face. It was impossible to trifle at that 
time, as Count D'Orvilliers had assured Captain Jones, unless 
he could get the Drake ready to transport the prisoners to 
America before orders arrived from Court, they would in all 
probability be given up without an exchange, to avoid imme- 
diate w r ar with England. It therefore became impossible to 
suffer the lieutenant to remain any longer among them. 
Captain Jones had him removed to the ship called the Admi- 
ral, where the Frenck. confine even the first officers in the 



LETTER TO THE COMMISSIONERS. 85 

service. He had there a good chamber to himself, and 
liberty to walk the deck. The lieutenant endeavoured to 
desert out of the Admiral, and behaved in a manner so 
extravagant, that Count D'Orvilliers (without the knowledge 
of Captain Jones) ordered him to the prison of the port, 
where he also had a good chamber, and Captain Jones paid 
his expenses out of his own pocket. 

" About this time Captain Jones, finding the lieutenant 
appeared more reasonable than formerly, took his parole in 
writing, not to serve again in the navy before he was acquit- 
ted by a court-martial, and set him at liberty. A day or 
two afterwards the Commissioners thought fit to interfere 
respecting the lieutenant of the Ranger, which, it is presumed, 
they had no authority to do, as it laid the axe to the root of 
subordination." 

On returning from Versailles, whither he had gone, as has 
been noticed, on the invitation of Franklin, Captain Jones 
feeling himself dreadfully aggrieved, wrote as follows : — 

" Brest, August 13th, 1773. 
" Gentlemen, 

" I have been five days in this place since my return from 
Passy, during which time I have neither seen nor heard from 
Lieutenant Simpson ; but Mr. Hill, who was last winter at 
Passy, and who sailed with me from Nantes, informs me 
truly, that it is generally reported in the Ranger, and of 
course throughout the French fleet, and on shore, that I am 
turned out of the service ; that you, gentlemen, have given 
Mr. Simpson my place with a captain's commission, and that 
my letter to you of the 16th July was involuntary on my 
part, and in obedience only to your orders. 

" That these reports prevail is not an idle conjecture, but 

a melancholy fact. Therefore I beseech you, — I demand of 

you to afford me redress, — redress by a court-martial; to 

form which we have now, with the assistance of Captain 

8 



80 DELAYS. 

Hinman, Captain Read, as also them at Nantes, a sufficient 
number of officers in France, exclusive of myself. The 
Providence and Britain are expected here very soon from 
Nantes, and I am certain that they neither can nor will again 
depart, before my friend Captain Hinman can come down here; 
and it is his unquestioned right to succeed me in the Ranger. 

" I have faithfully and personally supported and fought the 
dignified cause of human nature ever since the American 
banners first waved on the Delaware and on the ocean. 
This I did when that man did not call himself a republican, 
but left the continent, and served its enemies ; this I did when 
this man appeared backward, and did not support me as he 
ought. 

" I conclude by requesting you to call before you, and 
examine for your own satisfaction, Mr. Edward Meyers, 
who is now at the house of the Swedish Ambassador, and 
who, having been with me as a volunteer, can and will, I am 
persuaded, represent to you the conduct of the officers and 
men towards me, both before I left Brest, and afterwards in 
the Irish Channel, as well as my conduct towards them.— 1 
have the honour to be, &c. &c. 

" Their excellencies the 

American Plenipotentiaries." 

He received no immediate satisfaction, and resolved to 
digest his chagrin as he best could, and at least avoid the 
odium of a squabble among the Americans in France. 

In the spring of the following year, he, however, received 
a slight atonement to his wounded feelings, in an official 
letter signed by Franklin and Adams, stating, that as his 
removal from the Ranger, and the appointment of Lieutenant 
Simpson to the command of that ship, might be liable to 
misrepresentations and misinterpretations, they certified it to 
be done by them, that, on the request of M. de Sartine, he 
might be employed on some public service ; and that Simp- 



LETTER TO THE MINISTER. 87 

son had been appointed by his (Jones's) consent after he had 
released that officer from an arrest under which he had 
placed him. 

The prospect of immediate active service, of getting afloat 
with unlimited orders, and a larger force than he had ever 
yet commanded, so flattering and near in July, became more 
doubtful in the end of August; and by September, as war 
was now declared with England, the French officers were 
in the first place to be provided for; and the promised, or 
rather offered, frigates dwindled down to a much smaller 
force. Even that was delayed. After repeatedly applying 
to the American Commissioners, and using all the personal 
influence which his enlarged acquaintance in the court circles 
enabled him to obtain, Jones found it needful to remonstrate 
with M. de Sartine. He had, however, lost another powerful 
hold of the minister. The Prince of Nassau, who in the 
outset had eagerly desired to accompany him in his expedi- 
tion, either from caprice or change of views, abandoned the 
scheme, without scruple or apology, and to the letters of 
Tones did not even deign the civility of a reply. 

That his time might not be wholly consumed in idleness, 
and in the sickness of hope deferred, Jones again addressed 
the minister in what he calls " an explicit letter," which ex- 
plains his situation better than could be done in many words. 

"Brest, September 13th, 1778. 

" Honoured Sir, 

" When his Excellency Doctor Franklin informed me that 
you had condescended to think me worthy of your notice, I 
took such pleasure in reflecting on the happy alliance be- 
tween France and America, that I was really flattered, and 
entertained the most grateful sense of the honour which you 
proposed for me, as well as the favour which the king pro- 
posed for America, by putting so fine a ship of war as the 
Indian under my command, and under its flag, with unlimited 
orders. 



88 LETTER TO THE MINISTER. 

" In obedience to your desire, I came to Versailles, and was 
taught to believe that, my intended ship was in deep water, 
and ready for the sea ; but when the Prince (de Nassau) re- 
turned, I received from him a diflerent account ; I was told 
that the Indian could not be got afloat within a shorter period 
than three months at the approaching equinox. 

" To employ this interval usefully, I first offered to go from 
Brest with Count D'Orvilliers, as a volunteer, which you 
thought fit to reject. I had then the satisfaction to find that 
you approved in general of a variety of hints for private 
enterprises which I had drawn up for your consideration, and 
I was flattered with assurances from Messieurs de Chaumont 
and Bandonin, that three of the finest frigates in France, with 
two tenders, and a number of troops, would be immediately 
put under my command ; and that I should have unlimited 
orders, and be at free liberty to pursue such of my own pro- 
jects as I thought proper. But this plan fell to nothing in the 
moment when I was taught to think that nothing was wanting 
but the King's signature. 

*' Another much inferior armament from L'Orient was pro- 
posed to be put under my command, which was by no means 
equal to the services that were expected from it ; for speed 
and force, though both requisite, were both wanting. Happily 
for me this also failed, and I w r as thereby saved from a dread- 
ful prospect of ruin and dishonour. 

" I had so entire a reliance that you would desire nothing 
of me inconsistent with my honour and rank, that the mo- 
ment you required me to come down here, in order to proceed 
round to St. Malo, though I had received no written orders, 
and neither knew your intention respecting my destination or 
command, I obeyed with such haste, that although my curi- 
osity led me to look at the armament at L'Orient, yet I was 
but three days from Passy till I reached Brest. Here too I 
drew a blank; but when I saw the Lively, it was no disap- 
pointment, as that ship, both in sailing and equipment, is fat 
inferior to the Ranger. 



LETTER TO THE MINISTER. 89 

" My only disappointment here was my being precluded 
from embarking in pursuit of marine knowledge with Count 
D'Orvilliers, who did not sail till seven days after my return. 
He is my friend, and expressed his wishes for my company , 
I accompanied him out of the road when the fleet sailed ; 
and he always lamented that neither himself nor any person 
in authority in Brest had received from you any order that 
mentioned my name. I am astonished therefore to be in- 
formed that you attribute my not being in the fleet to my stay 
at L'Orient. 

" 1 am not a mere adventurer of fortune. Stimulated by 
principles of reason and philanthropy, I laid aside my enjoy- 
ments in private life, and embarked under the flag of America 
when it was first displayed. In that line my desire of fame 
is infinite, and 1 must not now so far forget my own honour, 
and what I owe to my friends and America, as to remain 
inactive. 

u ]\fy ran k knows no superior in the American marine : I 
have long since been appointed to command an expedition with 
five of its ships, and I can receive orders from no junior or 
inferior officer whatever. 

" I have been here in the most tormenting suspense for 
more than a month since my return ; and agreeable to your 
desire, as mentioned to me by Monsieur Chaumont, a lieu- 
tenant has been appointed, and is with me, who speaks the 
French as well as the English. Circular letters have been 
written, and sent the 8th of last month from the English Ad- 
miralty, because they expected me to pay another visit with 
four ships. Therefore I trust that, if the Indian is not to be 
got out, you will not, at the approaching season, substitute a 
force that is not at least equal both in strength and sailing to 
any of the enemy's cruising ships. •"* 

• " I do not wish to interfere with the harmony of the French 
marine ; but if I am still thought, worthy of your attention, 
I shall hope for a separate command, with liberal orders. If, 
8* 



90 DELAYS. 

on the contrary, yon should now have no further occasion foi 

my services, the only favour I can ask is, that you will best 
on me the Alert, with a lew seamen, and permit me to return, 
and carry with me your good opinion in that small ves 
before the winter, to America." 

This letter was submitted to the Due de R .eault. and 

enclosed to Franklin, who, while he omitted no opportunity 
o\' serving Jones, still counselled patience. To Franklin he 
says, " It is in vain for the minister to pretend that he has 
not ships to bestow. I know the contrary. He has bestowed 
the Renommee and others here since my return : and there are 
yet several new ships unbestowed at St. Malo and elsewhere. 
I know too, that unless the States o( Holland oppose it, the 
Indian can be got atloat with a tenth part oi the difficulty 
that has been represented. If I was worth his notice at the 
beginning I am not less so now. After all, you have desired 
me to have patience, and I promise you that I will wait your 
kind advice, and take no step without your approbation. If 
it were consistent and convenient for you to see M. de Sartine, 
I should hope that such an explanation would be the conse- 
quence as might remove every cause of uneasiness." 

Day after day he continued to write to Franklin, mention- 
ing vessels that he might command if the minister were sin- 
cere in his professions. Meanwhile Franklin procured the 
minister's order that he should be received on board the French 
fleet ; but, either intentionally or by accident, it came too late 
to admit of his embarking to gain that knowledge of naval 
tactics, and oi governing a fleet, which was his object. It 
was indeed surmised that the jealousy o( the French sen 
was the true obstacle, both to his promised command and 
desire of increasing his knowledge of his profession on the 
great scale** " I think of going to I/Onent." he says, "1 
heartily sick of Brest, and an eyesore to the marine." In 
another letter he says. •„• I have excited the jealousy of many 
vrs in our young navy, because I have pursued honoui 
while they sought after profit." 



DELAYS. 9] 

Gradually as his hopes decreased, Jones lowered his de- 
mands. He proposed many different vessels, the chief object 
being fast-sailing ships. 

" I wish to have no connexion with any ship that does not 
sail fast," he says, " for I intend to go in harm's way. You 
know, I believe, that this is not every one's intention ; there- 
fore buy a frigate that sails fast, and that is sufficiently large 
to carry twenty-six or twenty-eight guns on one deck." " I 
have, to show my gratitude to France," he adds, " lost so 
much time, and with it such opportunities as I cannot regain, 
— I have almost half killed myself with grief. Give me but 
an assurance that the command of the Indian will be reserved 
for me, and bestowed on no other person on any pretence 
whatsoever, and I will say I am satisfied. This I pledge 
myself will be no loss to France — America is not ungrateful. 
The noble-minded Congress inow not the little mean distinc- 
tions of climate or place of nativity, nor have they adopted 
any rule which can preclude them from encouraging or re- 
warding the merit of a stranger, by raising him even to the 
first posts of honour. In the army there are many instances 
of this. In the navy, young as it is, it gives me particular 
pleasure to inform you that Congress have given the command 
of the best ship in their service to a French officer, and called 
the ship the Alliance." 

Many vessels were proposed in succession, and all were 
abandoned. The anger and impatience of Jones got beyond 
control, and he never appears to have been of the temper 
which makes a proud man disdain to reveal his chagrin and 
disappointment. M. de Sartine accordingly, on his part, felt 
equally annoyed by the incessant importunity of the man who 
held him to his word. 

To the Due de Rochefoucault, whom he always found 
friendly, Jones writes, — " The minister's behaviour towards 
me has been and is really astonishing. At his request (for I 
sought not the connexion) I gave up absolute certainties, and 



92 LETTER TO THE DUC DE ROCIIEFOUCAULT. 

far more flattering prospects than any of those which he pro- 
posed. What inducement could I have for this but gratitude 
to France for having first recognized our independence? 
And having given my word to stay for some time in Europe, 
I have been and am unwilling to take it back, especially after 
having communicated the circumstances to Congress. The 
minister, to my infinite mortification, after possessing himself 
of my schemes and ideas, has treated me like a child five times 
successively, by leading me on from great to little, and from 
little to less. Does such conduct do honour either to his head 
or to his heart ? He has not to this moment offered me the 
least apology for any of these five deceptions ; norjias he, 1 
believe, assigned any good reason to that venerable and great 
character, his Excellency Doctor Franklin, whom he has 
made the instrument to entrap me in this cruel state of inaction 
and suspense. # 

" The minister has lately written a letter to Count D'Orvil- 
liers, proposing to send me home in ' une bonne voiture.' 
This is absolutely adding insult to injury, and it is the propo- 
sition of a man whose veracity I have not experienced in 
former cases. 

" I could in the summer, with the Ranger, joined with the 
two other American frigates, have given the enemy sufficient 
foundation for their fears in Britain as well as Ireland, and 
could since have been assisting Count D'Estaing, or acting 
separately with an American squadron. Instead of this I am 
chained down to shameful inactivity here, after having written 
to Congress to reserve no command for me in America. 

" Convinced as I am, that your noble and generous breast 
will feel for my unmerited treatment, I must beseech you to 
interest yourself with the Duke de Chartres, that the King 
may be made acquainted with my situation. I have been 
taught to believe that I have been detained in France with his 
Majesty's knowledge and approbation, and I am sure he is too 
good a prince to detain me for my hurt or dishonour. 



LETTER TO M. CHAUMONT. 93 

" M. de Sartine may think as he pleases, but Congress will 
not thank him for having thus treated an officer who has 
always been honoured with their favour and friendship. I 
entertained some hopes of his honourable intentions till he 
gave the command of the Fox to a lieutenant, after my friends 
had asked for me only that ship with the Alert cutter. He 
was the asker, at the beginning, and ought to be so now ; he 
has, to my certain knowledge, ships unbestowed, and he is 
bound in honour to give me the Indian, as he proposed at the 
first, or an equivalent command, immediately." 

To M. Ray de Chaumont, Jones says, about the same 
period, — 

" Although the minister has treated me like a child five suc- 
cessive times, by leading me on from great to little, and from 
little to less, yet I had some dependence on his honourable 
intentions until he refused the small commnnd which you 
asked for me the 23d ultimo, and afterwards bestowed the 
Fox on a lieutenant who, to my certain knowledge, does not 
thank him for the favour, and thinks that ship far short of his 
right. I say I verily believed the minister at the beginning, 
and afterwards ; but now having deceived me so often, I wish 
him to know that I doubt him, though he swears even ' by the 
stiz.'* I have written to him several respectful letters of some 
consequence, none of which he has condescended to answer. 
This is a piece of incivility and disrespect to me as a stranger 
which he has not shown even to subalterns in the French 
marine, in whose hands I have seen his answers to letters of 
little importance. The secrecy which I was required to ob- 
serve respecting what seemed his first intention in my favour 
has been inviolable ; and I have been so delicate with respect 
to my situation, that I have been, and am considered every- 
where as an officer disgraced and cast off for private reasons 
I have of course been in actual disgrace here ever since my 

* At an interview M. Chaumont had with the minister, he swore by Stvx 
that Paul Jones should have a frigate, were he even to buy it. 



94 LETTER OF YOUNG FRANKLIN. 

return, which is more than two months. I have already lost 
near five months of my time, the best season of the year, and 
such opportunities of serving my country, and acquiring 
honour, as I cannot again expect this war, while I have been 
thus shamefully entrapped in inaction. My duty and sensi- 
bility cannot brook this unworthy situation. If the minister's 
intentions have been honourable from the beginning, he will 
make a direct written apology to me, suitable to the injury 
which I have sustained, otherwise, in vindication of my sacred 
honour, painful as it will be, I must publish in the Gazettes of 
Europe the conduct he has held towards me." 

The compatriots of Jones in France sympathized in his 
disappointment and indignation ; particularly Dr. Bancroft and 
Mr. William Temple Franklin, the grandson and secretary of 
Benjamin Franklin. " I have felt for you most sincerely," 
says young Franklin ; " Monsieur S.'s conduct towards you 
has been as remarkable as it has been unjust, and has altered 
in a great degree the good opinion many have had of him. 
I have been asked in several companies, ou est le brave Cap- 
itaine Jones? quefait-il? and have felt myself (as your com- 
patriot) in a manner ill-treated, when I can only answer that 
you are still at Brest. On the receipt of your letter, I asked 
Mr. Chaumont * whether he thought anything would be done 
for you V He answered, ' that to his certain knowledge M. S. 
was ashamed of the conduct he had held towards you, and 
that he was now occupied to make up for it. Bancroft,' says 
he, * is assured that the minister had all along felt good dispo- 
sitions, but had been prevented from carrying them into 
execution by the intrigues of 487,557,* (the marine,) among 
whom multitudes were making interest, and caballing to ob- 
tain 303, (ships,) and opposing the disposal of any except 
among their own body ; but 710 (M. de Sartine) had assured 
him that you should soon have one, if he were even to pur 

* These numbers refer to a cipher that Bancroft and young Franklin ha© 
got from Paul Jones for their private correspondence with him. 



DELAYS 95 

chase it.' Mr. Bandonin desired me also to make you his 
best compliments, to assure you that he would not suffer your 
business to rest much longer, and in the mean time to beg 
your patience a little longer. In this situation I know not 
what we can do, but wait a week or two, when, if nothing 
comes, I think 299 (Doctor Franklin) will declare his utmost 
resentment, and nothing that any of us can say will be too 
bad." 

Worn out with waiting, " half killed," as he strongly ex- 
presses himself, with suspense and inaction, Jones now formed 
the design of directly addressing the King, and of soliciting 
the kindness of the family of Chartres, (Orleans,) in present- 
ing his letter. He, as usual, took the precaution of enclosing 
all these epistolary compositions to Franklin, — a course which 
preserved him from ever going too far wrong, even w T hile 
under the greatest irritation. 

In his letter to Franklin, he says, " The Duchesse de 
Chartres will, I am persuaded, undertake to deliver my letter 
into the King's hands ; and as you may not yet think fit to 
appear in the business, either the Due de Rochefoucault, or 
your grandson, will oblige me by waiting on her at the Palais 
Royal. The Due de Rochefoucault, as he understands Eng- 
lish well, and is acquainted with the circumstances, would 
oblige me much if he would be present when the letter is 
presented to the King. I do not wish to trouble the Due de 
Chartres about this affair, as that brave prince has undeserv- 
edly met with vexations of his own." 

The following is the letter which Captain Jones wrote to 
the King of France, and which was to be presented to his 
Maiesty by the Duchess of Chartres,. afterwards the Duchess 
of Orleans : — 



96 LETTER TO THE KING. 

Brest, October 19th, 1778. 

" Sire, 

" After my return to Brest in the American ship of war the 
Ranger, from the Irish Channel, his excellency Dr. Franklin 
informed me by letter, dated June the 1st, that M. de Sartine, 
having a high opinion of my conduct and bravery, had deter- 
mined, with your Majesty's consent and approbation, to give 
me the command of the ship of war the Indian, which was 
built at Amsterdam for America, but afterwards, for political 
reasons, made the property of France. 

" I was to act with unlimited orders under the commission 
and flag of America ; and the Prince de Nassau proposed to 
accompany me on the ocean. 

" I was deeply penetrated with the sense of the honour 
done me by this generous proposition, as well as of the favour 
your Majesty intended thereby to confer on America. And 
I accepted the offer with the greater pleasure, as the Con- 
gress had sent me to Europe in the Ranger, to command the 
Indian, before the ownership of that vessel was changed. 

" The minister desired to see me at Versailles to settle 
future plans of operation, and I attended him for that purpose. 
I was told that the Indian was at the Texel completely 
armed and fitted for sea; but the Prince de Nassau was sent 
express to Holland, and returned with a very different ac- 
count. The ship was at Amsterdam, and could not be got 
afloat or armed before the September equinox. The Ameri- 
can plenipotentiaries proposed that. I should return to America ; 
and as I have repeatedly been appointed to the chief com- 
mand of an American squadron to execute secret enterprises, 
it was not doubted but that Congress would again show me a 
preference. M. de Sartine, however, thought proper to pre- 
vent my departure, by writing to the plenipotentiaries, (with- 
out my knowledge,) requesting that I might be permitted to 
remain in Europe, and that the Ranger might be sent back 
to America under another commander, he having special ser- 



LETTER TO THE KING. 97 

vices which he wished me to execute. This request they 
readily granted, and I was flattered by the prospect of being 
enabled to testify, by my services, my gratitude to your 
Majesty, as the first prince who has so generously acknow- 
ledged our independence. ' 

" There was an interval of more than three months before 
the Indian could be gotten afloat. To employ that period 
usefully, when your Majesty's fleet was ordered to sail from 
Brest, I proposed to the minister to embark in it as a volun- 
teer, in pursuit of marine knowledge. He objected to this, 
at the same time approved of a variety of hints for private 
enterprises, which I had drawn up for his consideration. 
Two gentlemen were appointed to settle with me the plans 
that were to be adopted, who gave me the assurance that 
three of the best frigates in France, with two tenders, and a 
number of troops, should be immediately put under my com- 
mand, to pursue such of my own projects as I thought pro- 
per ; but this fell to nothing, when I believed that your Majes- 
ty's signature only was wanting. 

" Another armament, composed of cutters and small ves- 
sels, at L'Orient, was proposed to be put under my command, 
to alarm the coast of England and check the Jersey priva- 
teers ; but, happily for me, this also failed, and I was saved 
from ruin and dishonour, as I now find that all the vessels 
sailed slow, and their united force is very insignificant. The 
minister then thought fit that I should return to Brest to com- 
mand the Lively, and join some frigates on an expedition 
from St. Malo to the North Sea. I returned in haste for that 
purpose, and found that the Lively had been bestowed at Brest 
before the minister had mentioned that ship to me at Ver- 
sailles. This was, however, another fortunate disappointment, 
as the Lively proves, both in sailing and equipment, much in- 
ferior to the Ranger ; but, more especially, if it be true, as I 
have since understood, that the minister intended to give the 
chief command of the expedition to a lieutenant, which would 
9 



98 LETTER TO THE KING. 

have occasioned a very disagreeable misunderstanding : for, 
as an officer of the first rank in the American marine, who 
has ever been honoured with the favour and friendship of 
Congress, I can receive orders from no inferior officer what- 
ever. My plan was the destruction of the English Baltic 
Meet, of great consequence to the enemy's marine, and then 
only protected by a single frigate ! I would have held 
myself responsible for its success had I commanded the ex- 
pedition. 

" M. de Sartine afterwards sent orders to Count D'Orvilliers 
to receive me on board the fleet, agreeably to my former 
proposal ; but the order did not arrive until after the depar- 
ture of the fleet the last time from Brest, nor was I made 
acquainted with the circumstance before the fleet returned 
here. 

" Thus have I been chained down to shameful inactivity 
for nearly five months. I have lost the best season of the year, 
and such opportunities of serving my country and acquiring 
honour as I cannot again expect this war; and, to my infinite 
mortification, having no command, I am considered every- 
where an officer cast off and in disgrace for secret reasons. 

" I have written respectful letters to the minister, none of 
which he has condescended to answer ; I have written to the 
Prince de Nassau with as little effect ; and I do not under- 
stand that any apology has been made to the great and ven- 
erable Dr. Franklin, whom the minister has made the instru- 
ment of bringing me into such unmerited trouble. 

" Having written to Congress to reserve no command for 
me in America, my sensibility is the more affected by this 
unworthy situation in the sight of your Majesty's fleet. I, 
however, make no remark on the treatment I have received. 

" Although I wish not to become my own panegyrist, I 
must beg your Majesty's permission to observe, that I am not 
an adventurer in search of fortune, of which, thank God, I 
have a sufficiency. 



LETTER TO THE KING. 99 

" When the American banner was first displayed, I drew 
my sword in support of the violated dignity and rights of 
human nature ; and both honour and duty prompt me stead- 
fastly to continue the righteous pursuit, and to sacrifice to it, 
not only my private enjoyments, but even life, if necessary. 
I must acknowledge that the generous praise which I have 
received from Congress and others exceeds the merit of my 
past services ; therefore I the more ardently wish for future 
opportunities of testifying my gratitude by my activity. 

"As your Majesty, by espousing the cause of America. 

hath become the protector of the rights of human nature, I 

am persuaded that you will not disregard my situation, nor 

suffer me to remain any longer in this insupportable disgrace. 

I am, with perfect gratitude 

and profound respect, 
Sire, 
Your Majesty's very obliged, 

very obedient, and 
very humble servant, 

J. Paul Jones." 

There is no satisfactory evidence that the above letter was 
ever presented, or indeed that it ever came into the hands of 
the Duchess of Chartres ; yet the fact appears to be assumed 
by some of the biographers of Jones ; and the letter itself, as 
expressive of his sentiments at this crisis, is too important to 
be suppressed. The correspondence and journals of Jones 
contain no allusion to any effect produced by that letter, — not 
even the extract of his journal made long afterwards, ex- 
pressly for the perusal of the king ; and the postscript of a 
letter written by Mr. Temple Franklin is at least complete 
proof that, if the letter to the king was ever delivered, it was 
decidedly against the judgment of Franklin. The letter of 
the younger Franklin is dated the 22d October, the postscript 
the 24th. It says, " Since writing the above, I have received 



100 JONES'S GRATITUDE. 

vours of the 19th instant (the letter to the king.) I would 
willingly do everything you there desire of me, but it is my 
grandfather's opinion that there will be no occasion to send 
those letters ; and I imagine they were wrote before you 
heard of the minister's final determination. If, however, you 
still think they ought to be sent, you have only to order it." 

From this it would appear that the minister's " final deter- 
mination" to buy Jones " a suitable ship" had preceded the 
letter to the King and was not a consequence of it. In a letter 
to M. de Chaumont, of the 30th November, Jones thus ex- 
presses himself with regard to M. de Sartine : — " My best 
respects and most grateful thanks await the minister for the 
very honourable things he said of me to the Due de la Roche- 
foucault. It shall be my ambition, when he gives me oppor- 
tunities, to merit his favour and affection." 




DECLINES THE COMMAND OF VRIVATEERS. 



101 



CHAPTER V. 




HE gratitude of Jones to the 
minister of marine was pre- 
mature. But it would be tire- 
some to follow the train ot 
petty disappointments which 
this brave man had yet to 
encounter before he got once 
again fairly afloat. From the 
month of June, 1778, till the 
month of February of the following year, he was condemned 
to feel to its utmost extent the misery there is — 

u In suing long to bide." 

In this interval some proposals were made to Captain Jones 
while at Brest to take the command of privateers. This he 
decidedly declined ; and he even resented the supposition that, 
bearing, as he did, the commission of Congres, he should act 
at any time as the commander of privateers. So nice was 
he on this point, that in one instance we find Franklin himself 
condescending to sooth his hasty feelings. " Depend upon 
it," says the sage, " I never wrote Mr. Gillon that the Bon 
Homme Richard was a privateer. I could not write so, 
because I never had such a thought. I will next post send 
you a copy of my letter to him, by which you will see that 
he has only forced that construction from a vague expression 
[ used, merely to conceal from him (in answering his idle 
iemand that I would order your squadron, then on the point 
of sailing, to go with him to Carolina,) that the expedition 
ivas at the expense and under the direction of the king, which 
9* 



]02 JONES AT COURT. 

it was not proper or necessary for him to know." And to 
the proposal that he would take the command of an armament 
of privateers, Jones says, " Were I in pursuit of profit I would 
accept it without hesitation ; but I am under such obligations 
to Congress, that I cannot think myself my own master, — and 
as a servant of the Imperial Republic of America, honoured 
with the public approbation of my past services, I cannot, 
from my own authority or inclination, serve either myself or 
even my best friends, in any private line whatsoever.' , With 
these feelings, his indignation at being long afterwards offered 
a letter-of-marque by the French government, in requital of 
his services, may be easily imagined. But this belongs to a 
more advanced stage of his history. 

Everything appeared in a fair way in November; yet Jones 
found it necessary to repair once more to Versailles, and to 
Passy, the seat of the American legation. " As nothing was 
done," he says in his memorial to the king, " Captain Jones 
determined to go himself to court." When he got there, the 
minister offered him the Marshal de Broglio, a large ship; 
but as his Americans had all left the service during the long 
period of idleness, he was unable to man this vessel, and the 
Due de Duras was bought for him, which, among many 
other vessels, he had acquainted his friends, was on sale at 
L'Orient. 

On the 6th of February Jones had at last the satisfaction 
of making, from Passy, his acknowledgments to the minister 
Sartine. His gratitude was quite as lively as the treatment 
he had received required. He obtained leave to change the 
name of the ship to Bon Homme Richard, " in compliment," 
he says, " to a saying of Poor Richard," (of which, by the 
way, he had just experienced the truth,) " If you would have 
your business done, come yourself — if not, send." 

Jones now went to Nantes to engage seamen, and to obtain 
cannon to arm his ship. On his late journey he had been in- 
troduced to M. Gamier, in order to concert a plan of opera- 



THE BON HOMME RICHARD. 10? 

tions for a combined naval and military force. Four or five 
sail were to be added to the Bon Homme Richard, of which 
two vessels were to be fire-ships. Five hundred picked men, 
taken from the Irish regiment, were to embark under the 
command of Mr. Fitzmaurice. All were to be under the en- 
tire command of Jones. " A plan,"* he says, " was laid, 
which promised perfect success, and had it succeeded, would 
have astonished the world." 

In an evil hour he solicited that the Alliance, a new Ame- 
rican frigate, of which the command had been given by Con- 
gress to one Landais, a Frenchman, should be added to his 
force. As Dr. Franklin had just been formally appointed 
ambassador to the Court of France, Jones imagined that not 
only the disposal of the frigate, but the power of displacing 
its commander at pleasure, was vested in him, as the guardian 
of American interests in Europe. 

About this time the Marquis de la Fayette returned from 
America, and he wished to go on the projected expedition. 
Jones was summoned to court and it was arranged that the 
Marquis de la Fayette was to command a body of about 
seven hundred troops, assigned him by the king. The Alli- 
ance was made part of the squadron by the American minister 
plenipotentiary, at the particular desire of the French go- 
vernment. 

The squadron was now to consist of the Bon Homme 
Richard, the Alliance, the Pallas, the Vengeance brig, and 
the Cerf, a fine cutter, well fitted and manned. " A person," 
(M. Chaumont,) says Jones, " was appointed commissary, and 
unwisely intrusted with the secret of the expedition. The 
commissary took upon himselfthe whole direction at L'Orient; 
but the secret was too big for him to keep. All Paris rang 
with the expedition from L'Orient; and government was 
obliged to drop the plan when the squadron lay ready for sea, 
and the troops ready to embark." 

* This plan was directed against Liverpool. 



104 



FRANKLIN'S LETTER. 




La Fayette. 



In the expectation that Jones was to be joined by the Mar- 
quis de la Fayette, his judicious friend Franklin wrote him 
Inus, actuated, no doubt, both by anxiety for the public cause 
and regard to the individual he addressed : 

" I have, at the request of M. de Sartine, postponed the 
sending of the Alliance to America, and have ordered her to 
proceed immediately from Nantes to L'Orient, where she is 



DR. FRANKLIN'S ADVICE. 105 

to be furnished with her complement of men, join your little 
squadron, and act under your command. 

" The Marquis de la Fayette will be with you soon. It 
has been observed that joint expeditions of land and sea forces 
often miscarry through jealousies and misunderstandings be- 
tween the officers of the different corps. This must happen 
where there are little minds, actuated more by personal views 
of profit or honour to themselves, than by the warm and sin- 
cere desire of good to their country. Knowing you both, as 
I do, and your just manner of thinking on these occasions, 
I am confident nothing of the kind can happen between you, 
and that it is unnecessary for .me to recommend to either of 
you that condescension, mutual good- will, and harmony, 
which contribute so much to success in such undertakings. I 
look upon this expedition as an introduction only to greatei 
trusts and more extensive commands, and as a kind of trial 
of both your abilities and of your fitness in temper and dis- 
position for acting in concert with others. I flatter myself, 
therefore, that nothing will happen that may give impressions 
to the disadvantage of either of you, when greater affairs 
shall come under consideration. 

" As this is understood to be an American expedition, un- 
der the -Congress commission and colours, the Marquis, who 
is a Major-General in that service, has of course the step in 
point of rank, and he must have the command of the land- 
forces, which are committed by the king to his care ; but the 
command of the ships will be entirely in you, in which I am 
persuaded that whatever authority his rank might in strictness 
give him, he will not have the least desire to interfere with 
you. There is honour enough to be got for both of you if 
the expedition is conducted with a prudent unanimity. The 
circumstance is indeed a little unusual ; for there is not only 
a junction of land and sea forces, but there is also a junction 
of Frenchmen and Americans, which increases the difficulty 
of maintaining a good understanding ; a cool, prudent co^ 



£06 LETTER TO LA FAYETTE. 

duct in the chiefs is therefore the more necessary, and I trust 
neither of you will in that respect be deficient. With m} 
best wishes for your success, health, and honour, I remain, 
dear sir, your affectionate and most obedient servant." 

This excellent counsel was not thrown away on Jones. 
His letter to La Fayette, written a few days afterwards, re- 
echoes the sentiments of the republican sage. " Where men 
of fine feelings are concerned," he says, " there is very sel- 
dom any misunderstanding, — and I am sure I should do the 
greatest violence to my sensibility if I were capable of giv- 
ing you a moment's pain by any part of my conduct ; there- 
fore, without any apology, I shall expect you to point out my 
errors, when we are alone together, with perfect freedom, — 
and I think I dare promise you that your reproof shall not be 
lost. I have received from the good Dr. Franklin instruc- 
tions at large, which do honour to his liberal mind, and which 
it will give me the greatest satisfaction to execute. I cannot 
ensure success, — but we will endeavour to deserve it." 

Some of the instructions of Dr. Franklin to which Jones 
refers, and of which he says, " your noble-minded instructions 
would make a coward brave," deserve to be made known as 
widely as possible.* 

" 1[ ou are to bring to France all the English seamen you 
may happen to take prisoners, in order to complete the good 
work you have already made such progress in, of delivering, 
by an exchange, the rest of our countrymen now languishing 
in the gaols of Great Britain. 

*' As many of your officers and people have lately escaped 
from the English prisons, either in Europe or America, you 
are to be particularly attentive to their conduct towards the 
prisoners which the fortune of war may throw in your hands, 

* It is a pleasing trait in the history of that period, that all the naval com- 
manders of the countries at war with England had particular orders " not to 
molest the ships of the brave navigator Captain Cook," if thev chanced to fall 
;n with them. 



FRANKLIN'S INSTRUCTIONS. 107 

lest resentment of the more than barbarous usage by the 
English in many places towards the Americans, should oc- 
casion a retaliation, and an imitation of what ought rather to 
be detested and avoided, for the sake of humanity and for the 
honour of our country. 

" In the same view, although the English have wantonly 
burnt many defenceless towns in America, you are not to fol- 
low this example, unless where a reasonable ransom is re- 
fused ; in which case your own generous feelings, as well as 
this instruction, will induce you to give timely notice of your 
intention, that sick and ancient persons, women and children, 
may be first removed." 

Jones attributes the failure of the expedition so much talked 
of to the tattling of the commissary ; but he probably over- 
rates that circumstance. The truth is that the French 
government never continued for one week of the same mind ; 
and they had, about this time, been seized with that grand 
idea by which the court and people of France seem to be 
periodically infatuated — the design of invading England. 
The expedition which was " to astonish the world" was 
abandoned, according to La Fayette, " for political and mili- 
tary reasons." Instead of Commodore Jones burning towns 
and shipping, taking hostages and levying contributions, an 
invasion was to be attempted on that grand scale so congenial 
to the Gallic character. 

Another service was in consequence allotted to Jones. He 
was to act as convoy to troops, stores and private merchan- 
dise, for Bordeaux and other ports in the Bay of Biscay 
This trifling service he performed, and cruised about with 
little aim or effect for some days. 

On the night of the 20th June, the Alliance ran foul of the 
Bon Homme Richard, and injured the vessel. The character 
of Landais, the commander of the Alliance, and his after 
conduct, which was marked by the grossest degree of insub- 
ordination, insolence, and even treachery, gave rise to a 
suspicion that this accident was of a doubtful character 



l08 DOMESTIC AFFLICTIONS. 

The head and bowsprit of the Bon Homme Richard were 
curried away, and the Alliance lost her mizen-mast. The 
lieutenant of the Bon Homme Richard, who had the watch 
that night, was afterwards broke by a court-martial. 

Even at this busy period Jones had not forgotten his rela- 
tions in Scotland, though his correspondence with them neces- 
sarily required some management. It does not appear by 
what channel the following letter, received at Dumfries, was 
transmitted to Cork. The person on whom the bill (for 30Z) 
was drawn could not be heard of in Carlisle. Other remit- 
tances made by Jones to his friends were in like manner 
never received. In reply to a letter from his sister, Mrs. 
Taylor, informing him of the death of his mother and eldest 
sister, he says with true feeling, " The loss of those deal 
friends is the more affecting to me, as they never received the 
remittances I intended for them, and as they had not perhaps 
a true idea of my affection." The following letter is addressed 
to Jones' eldest sister, Elizabeth Paul : — 

"Cork, June 1st, 1779. 
" If ever my dear girl had any doubts of the sincerity of 
my friendship, I hope the enclosed bill will remove them. 
You find it drawn in favour of my dearest departed brother, 
Captain Plaince. However, as it is made payable to his 
order, my sister-in-law's signature will make it quite the same. 
Had the bill been drawn on any place of commerce, I would 
have negotiated it myself, and then got a bill on Dumfries for 
you; however, as Carlisle is near you, you will sooner get 
the money, as I must have sent it there for acceptance. The 
half is for Mrs. Paul, and the other half for your use. You 
will immediately get some gentleman to present it for accept- 
nnce: you will find it payable ten days after. Adieu, my 
dear girl; number me with the sincerest of your friends, 
write me of your health, and be assured of the good wishes of 
" Your humble servant, 

"Judith Plaince." 



CHASE. 109 

On the 30th of June, Jones came into the road of Groix. 
The Alliance and Bon Homme Richard both required to 
be refitted ; the other vessels meanwhile looked after prizes. 
On that day the log-book of the Bon Homme Richard has 
the following entry : — 

" At half-past 7, P. M., saw two sail bearing down upon us, 
one with a flag at each mast-head. Hove about and stood 
from them to get in readiness for action ; then hove mizen- 
topsail to the mast, down all stay-sails and up mizen-sail. 
Then they hove about and stood from us. Immediately we 
tacked ship and stood after them. 

" After which they wore ship and stood for us. Captain 
Jones, gentleman-like, called all his officers, and consulted 
them whether they were willing to see them. They all said 
yes. Made sail after them ; but they, being better sailers 
than we, got from us. At 1, A. M., tacked ship." 

At the isle of Groix, Jones lay six weeks, — a period not 
without its vexations. In anticipating his earlier arrival, and 
unconscious of the damage received by the shock of the 
Alliance, Dr. Franklin, in the following letter of the 30th June, 
directed him to set out on a long cruise. 

"Passy, June 30, 1779. 
" Dear Sir, 

" Being arrived at Groix, you are to make the best of your 
way, with the vessels under your command, to the west of 
Ireland, and establish your cruise on the Orcades, the Cape 
of Derneus, and the Dogger-Bank, in order to take the enemy's 
property in those seas. 

" The prizes you may make send to Dunkirk, Ostend, or 
Bergen, in Norway, according to your proximity to either of 
those ports. Address them to the persons M. De Chaumont 
shall indicate to you. 

" About the 15th August, when you will have sufficiently 
cruised in these seas, you are to make route for the Texel 
where you will meet my further orders. 
10 



HO CORRESPONDENCE. 

'• If, by any personal accident, you should be rendered 
unable to execute these instructions, the officer of your 
squadron next in rank is to endeavour to put them in execu- 
tion. 

" With best wishes for your prosperity, I am ever, dear Sir 

your affectionate friend and humble servant, 

B. Franklin. 
" The Honourable Captain Jones." 

The preceding letter was crossed by that in which Jones 
gave an account of his cruise, and of the Alliance running foul 
of the Bon Homme Richard. In this letter he again hinted 
his desire to obtain the Indian, to cruise towards the Texel, 
and bring her out with the crew he now had. But Franklin 
had no mind to change his original orders. " I have no 
other orders to give," he says ; " for as the court are at 
the chief expense, I think they have the best right to direct.' , 
— " I observe what you say about a change of destination ; 
but when a thing has been once considered and determined 
on in council, they don't care to resume the consideration of 
it, having much business on hand." This epistle has the fol- 
lowing pithy postscipt: — " N. B. If it should fall in youi 
way, remember that the Hudson's Bay ships are very valu- 
able. B. F." 

Again Jones complained bitterly of the tattling commissary 
(Chaumont,) who had formerly frustrated the expedition 
with La Fayette, and was now busied at similar work. Per- 
haps Commodore Jones might be over sensitive or suspicious 
on this point. " I have another proof," he says, " this day of 
the communicative disposition of M. De Chaumont. He has 
written to an officer under my command a whole sheet on 
the subject of your letter, and has even introduced more than 
perhaps was necessary to a person commanding in chief. I 
have also strong reasons to think that this officer is not the 
only improper person here to whom he has written to the 
same effect. This is surely a strange infatuation, and it is 



MUTINOUS DISPOSITION. HI 

much to be lamented that one of the best hearts in the world 
should be connected with a mistaken head, whose errors can 
afford him neither pleasure nor profit, but may effect the ruin 
and dishonour of a man whom he esteems and loves. Believe 
me, my worthy sir, I dread the thoughts of seeing this subject 
too soon in print, as I have done several others of greater im- 
portance, with which he was acquainted, and which I am 
certain he communicated too early to improper persons, 
whereby very important services have been impeded and set 
aside." 

In a marginal note, in the handwriting of Jones, he says, — 
" I found it in print before I reached Holland !" And in an- 
other marginal note on a letter of Dr. Franklin's of the 19th 
July, he writes, " It is clear I saw my danger, and sailed with 
my eyes open, rather than return to America dishonoured." 

Jones was farther annoyed by reports which had reached 
head-quarters, and which were indeed too well-founded, that a 
mutinous disposition had shown itself among the crew of the 
Bon Homme Richard. He had at this time gone back to 
L'Orient. It was not deemed expedient to permit the ship to 
sail without inquiry and a change of men ; and, what was 
worse, the Court saw no reason to detain the Alliance, because 
the Bon Homme Richard was unfit for sea ; and Franklin did 
not think proper to prevent what appeared so reasonable. 
This, however, did not take place ; and holding out the pros- 
pect of capturing the Jamacia fleet,* then expected, escorted 
by a fifty-gun ship and two strong frigates, Jones solicited 
and obtained leave for the Monsieur privateer to join him, 
and his leave was extended till the end of September. The 
captains of the Monsieur and Grandville privateers had at 
this time requested to be permitted to follow him and share 
his fortunes, offering to bind themselves to remain attached 

* In his memorial to the king of France, Jones says, " that it was his inten- 
tion to cruise off the south-west of Ireland for twelve or fifteen days to inter 
rept the enemy." 



312 JONES SAILS FROM GROIX. 

to his squadron ; but this the disinterested commissary would 
not permit. The consequences were soon obvious ; the pri- 
vateers remained attached to the squadron exactly as long 
as suited themselves. 

Having given the necessary orders and signals, and ap- 
pointed various places of rendezvous for every captain in case 
of separation, Commodore Jones sailed from the road of Groix 
on the 14th of August, exactly one day short of the time he 
had been desired to come into the Texel, after ending his 
cruise ; so uncertain and precarious are all nautical move- 
ments. The squadron consisted of seven sail : the Bon Homme 
Richard, of 40 guns ; the Alliance, of 36 ; the Pallas, of 32 ; 
the Cerf, of 18 ; and the Vengeance, of 12 guns ; besides the 
privateers, Monsieur, of 40 guns, and the Grandville, of 14 
guns ; — " a force which might have effected great services," 
says Jones himself, in his memorial to the king of France, 
" and done infinite injury to the enemy, had there been secrecy 
and due subordination. Unfortunately there was neither. 
Captain Jones saw his danger ; but his reputation being at 
stake, he put all to the hazard." 

The effects of this want of subordination were soon felt. 
The captain of the privateer Monsieur, as might have been 
expected, acted as he thought proper, and in a few days left 
the squadron. And Captain Landais, a man of the most un- 
happy temper, not only behaved with disrespect to the com- 
mander, but soon assumed to act as he pleased, and as an 
independent commander, refusing to obey the signals of the 
commodore, giving chase where or how he thought fit, and 
availing himself of any pretext to leave the squadron, which 
he finally abandoned. Several prizes were made on the first 
days of the cruise, and more might have been captured, had 
a good understanding subsisted among the commanders. 

From the 3d of September till the 13th the weather was 
stormy, and Jones continued to beat about the coasts of Scot- 
land. The Alliance had again separated from the Bon Homme 



ATTEMPT ON LEITH. 



113 




Storm off the coast of Scotland. 



Richard ; and there remained of the squadron only the Com- 
modore's ship, with the Pallas and Vengeance. "Yet," says 
Jones, " I did not abandon the hope of performing some essen- 
tial service." 

It was at this time he offered that attempt on Leith, by 
which, in one quarter of Scotland, the formidable name of. 
" Paul Jones" is still best remembered. The following par- 
ticulars are taken from his letter to Dr. Franklin, giving an 
account of his cruise to be transmitted to Congress. The 
letter is dated October 3, 1779, on board the ship of war 
Serapis, at anchor without the Texel : — 

" The winds continued to be contrary, so that we did not 
see the land till the evening of the 13th, when the hills of 
Cheviot, in the south-east of Scotland, appeared. The next 
day we chased sundry vessels, and took a ship and a brig- 
antine, both from the frith of Edinburgh, laden with coal. 
Knowing that there lay at anchor in Leith Road an armed 
ship of 20 guns, with two or three fine cutters. I formed an 
10* 



fc 14 JONES'S SUMMONS. 

expedition against Leith, which I purposed to lay under con- 
tribution, or otherwise to reduce it to ashes. Had I been 
alone, the wind being favourable, I would have proceeded 
directly up the frith, and must have succeeded, as they lay then 
in a state of perfect indolence and security, which would have 
proved their ruin. Unfortunately for me, the Pallas and Ven- 
geance were both at a considerable distance in the offing, they 
having chased to the southward. This obliged me to steer 
out of the frith again to meet them. The captains of the 
Pallas and Vengeance being come on board the Bon Homme 
Richard, I communicated to them my project, to which many 
difficulties and objections were made by them. At last, how- 
ever, they appeared to think better of the design, after I had 
assured (them) that I hoped to raise a contribution of 200,000/. 
sterling on Leith, and that there was no battery of cannon 
there to oppose our landing. So much time, however, was 
unavoidably spent in pointed remarks and sage deliberations 
that night, that the wind became contrary in the morning." 

That notning might be wanting, Commodore Jones mean- 
while prepared his summons to the Magistrates of Leith. In 
that locality it must still be an interesting document ; and as 
such we give it at full length, not doubting that the worship- 
ful persons for whom it was intended, if any of them should 
haply still survive, will see it for the first time with more satis- 
faction in these harmless pages than had it reached its desti- 
nation fifty years back. Jones felt greatly chagrined and 
disappointed at the failure of this enterprise. 

" The Honourable J. Paul Jones, Commander-in-Chief of the American 
Squadron now in Europe, fyc, to the Worshipful the Provost of heith y 
or, in his absence, to the Chief Magistrate who is now actually pre- 
sent and in authority there. 

4 Sip 

" The British marine force that has been stationed here for 
the protection of your city and commerce being now taken 
bv the American arms under my command, I have the 



JONES'S SUMMONS. 115 

honour to send you this summons by my officer, Lieutenant- 
Colonel De Chamillard, who commands the vanguard of my 
troops. I do not wish to distress the poor inhabitants ; my 
intention is only to demand your contribution towards the re- 
imbursement which Britain owes to the much-injured citizens 
of the United States, — for savages would blush at the unmanly 
violation and rapacity that has marked the tracks of British 
tyranny in America, from which neither virgin innocence nor 
helpless age has been a plea of protection or pity. 

" Leith and its port now lies at our mercy ; and did not 
our humanity stay the hand of just retaliation, I should, with- 
out advertisement, lay it in ashes. Before I proceed to that 
stern duty as an officer, my duty as a man induces me to 
propose to you, by the means of a reasonable ransom, to pre- 
vent such a scene of horror and distress. For this reason, I 
have authorized Lieutenant-Colonel De Chamillard, to con- 
clude and agree with you on the terms of ransom, allowing 
you exactly half an hour's reflection before you finally accept 
or reject the terms which he shall propose (200,000/.) If you 
accept the terms offered within the time limited, you may 
rest assured that no further debarkation of troops will be 
made, but that the re-embarkation of the vanguard will im- 
mediately follow, and that the property of the citizens shall 
remain unmolested. 

" I have the honour to be, with sentiments of due respect, 
Sir, your very obedient and very humble servant, 

" Paul Jones. 
" On board the American ship-of-war the Bon Homme Richard, at anchor in 
the Road of Leith, September the 17th, 1779." 

The copy of the letter now lying before us contains the N. 
B. subjoined to it, in his own hand-writing ; — 

" N. B. — The sudden and violent storm which arose in the 
moment when the squadron was abreast of Keith Island * 

* Inchkeith Island. 



116 ADVENTURE. 

which forms the entrance of the Road of Leith, rendered im- 
practicable the execution of the foregoing project." 

The three ships had lain so long otf and on the coast, that 
alarm was general; and on the 15th an express reached 
Edinburgh, sent to the commander-in-chief and to the Board 
of Customs, with accounts that three strange ships were seen 
off Eyemouth on the afternoon of the 14th, which had made 
two prizes ; and that a ship, supposed to mount 40 or 50 guns, 
was seen off Dunbar. At 5, P. M., on the 10th, they were 
distinctly seen from Edinburgh sailing up the Frith of Forth ; 
but whether they were French vessels or the squadron of 
Paul Jones, was not yet ascertained. The alarm along the 
coast was become general ; batteries were hastily erected at 
Leith, and the incorporated trades bravely petitioned for arms, 
which were supplied from the castle of Edinburgh. Yet the 
audacity of the American commander so far blinded some of 
the spectators on the northern shores, that on the 17th a boat 
with five men came off from the coast of Fife to the Bon 
Homme Richard, soliciting powder and shot in the name of a 
certain landed proprietor, who wished " to have the means of 
defending himself from the expected visit of the pirate Paul 
Jones." So far as powder went, this request was politely 
complied with ; but the commodore declined sending any shot. 

On the 15th a small collier had been captured, the master 
of which from his knowledge of the coast, and subserviency 
to his captor, was of the greatest use to Jones in his intended 
project. — When he afterwards abandoned the enterprise, he 
gave this man up his vessel, " on account of his attachment 
to America, and the faithful information and important services 
he rendered me, " says Jones, " by his general knowledge of 
the east coast of Britain. I had given orders to sink the old 
vessel, when the tears of this honest man prevailed over my 
intention." 

The narrative of this bold though abortive attempt will be 
best given in Jones's own words : — 



A STORM. 



117 




Adventure on the Coast of Fife. 



" We continued working to windward of the Frith, without 
being able to reach the road of Leith, till on the morning of 
the 17th, when, being almost within cannon-shot of the town, 
having everything in readiness for a descent, a very severe 
gale of wind came on, and, being directly contrary, obliged 
us to bear away, after having in vain endeavoured for some 
time to withstand its violence. The gale was so severe, that 
one of the prizes that were taken on the 14th sunk to the bot- 
tom, the crew being with difficulty saved. As the clamour 
had by this time reached Leith, by means of a cutter that had 
watched our motions that morning, and a? the wind continued 
contrary, (though more moderate in the evening,) I thought 
it impossible to pursue the enterprise with a good prospect of 
success, especially as Edinburgh, where there is always a 
number of troops, is only a mile distant from L«Uh ; therefore 
I gave up the project."* 

* The prodigious sensation caused by the appearance of th*» squadron of 
Paul Jones in the Frith of Forth is hardly yet forgotten on the poast of Fife 
There are various accounts of the manner in which this daring attempt was 
defeated. The 17th September, when Jones advanced to Leith, happened to 
be a Sunday. His ship, the Bon Homme Richard, stood at times so near the 



118 JONES'S DIFFICULTIES. 

It was the misfortune of Paul Jones, in almost every im- 
portant crisis of his life, to be either clogged by the timid 
counsels of those about him, whose genius and courage could 
not keep pace with his, or to be thwarted by the baser feelings 
o^ ignoble rivalship. In no other service than that of 
America, still struggling for a doubtful existence as an inde- 
pendent state, and without either power or means to enforce 
due obedience throughout the gradations of the public ser- 
vice, could such insubordination as was displayed by his 
force have been tolerated. The French officers under Jones 
at this time, besides the feelings of national and professional 

northern shores as to be distinctly seen by the crowds assembled on the beach, 
and on the commanding heights in the neighbourhood. At one time the Bon 
Homme Richard was not more than a mile from Kirkcaldy, a thriving and 
wealthy seaport. The alarm was naturally very great in that town ; and the 
Rev. Mr. Shirra, a worthy and a very eccentric dissenting clergyman, remark 
able for his quaint humour, instead of holding forth in the church as at ordi 
nary times, where on this day he would have had but a thin audience, repaired 
to the fine level sandy beach of Kirkcaldy, and soon attracted a very numer- 
ous congregation. Here he prayed most fervently and earnestly, with that 
homely and familiar eloquence by which his sermons and prayers were dis- 
tinguished, that the enterprise of " the piratical invader Paul Jones might be 
defeated." For once, it may be believed, the hearts of a congregation went 
with their minister. That violent gale, so much lamented by Paul Jones, 
suddenly rose, — the alleged consequence of Mr. Shirra's powerful intercession. 
Such was long the popular belief. When, in after periods, this good old man 
was questioned on the subject, and complimented on the prevailing spirit of 
his prayer, which had so opportunely raised the wind that blew off Paul 
Jones, his usual reply, disclaiming the full extent of the compliment, was, — 
" I prayed, — but the Lord sent the wind." 

A gentleman, writing shortly afterwards from Amsterdam to his friend in 
Leith, says, — " You may count it a very fortunate circumstance that this 
gentleman (Commodore Jones) was prevented from hurting you when he was 
in your Frith by a strong westerly wind, and the springing of a mast ; as, in 
a conversation I had with him in the city, he assured me that his intention 
was to seize the shipping in the harbour, and to set fire to such as he could not 
carry off. He seemed to be well acquainted with the coast, and knew that 
there was no force to oppose him." Jones is described at this time, by those who 
caw him, as being " dressed in the American uniform, with a Scotch bonnet, edged 
with gold ,-— -as a middling stature, stern countenance, and swarthy complexion." 



JONES'S COMPLAINTS. ] 19 

rivalship, had also too little experience of the capacity of 
their commander to give him that entire confidence so indis- 
pensable to success. His ill-fortune, with these uncongenial 
associates, was the more distressing, as their opposition or 
fears, while they baffled his enterprises, averted no real 
danger to which the loitering squadron might be exposed. 
The conduct of the agents of the court of France had also 
promoted and even authorised this unhappy insubordination 
of which the commodore, after his return to the Texel, bit- 
terly complained. " I must," he says, "speak plainly; as I 
have been always honoured with the full confidence of Con- 
gress, and as I also flattered myself with enjoying, in some 
measure, the confidence of the court of France, I could not 
but be astonished at the conduct of M. de Chaumont, when, 
in the moment of my departure from Groix, he produced a 
paper or concordat for me to sign in common with the officers 
whom I had commissioned but a few days before. Had this 
paper, or even a less dishonourable one, been proposed to me at 
the beginning, I would have rejected it with just contempt." 

The other enterprise, which, after having failed at Leith, 
Jones so reluctantly abandoned, is not exactly known. It 
might have been against Hull or Newcastle. It had been a 
favourite project with him in the former year to distress Lon- 
don by destroying the coal-shipping. 

Jones had now the mortifying prospect of going into the 
Texel with merely a few prizes, the sole fruit of a long cruise 
with a formidable maritime armament, when fortune threw 
in his way the most brilliant achievement of his public life. 




120 THE GREAT BATTLE. 




CHAPTER VI. 



HE engagement between the 
Serapis and the Bon Homme 
Richard was the most despe- 
rate in naval chronicles. As 
a close and deadly fight, hand 
to hand, and accompanied by 
all the dreadful circumstances 
that can attend a sea-engage- 
ment, it has no parallel. Its in- 
cidents have been selected as the foundation of fictitious nar- 
ratives of maritime combats, from exceeding in intense interest 
the boldest imaginings of the poet and the novelist.* 

This battle was fought on the 23d September, under a full 
harvest-moon, — thousands of spectators, we are told, watch- 
ing the engagement from the English shore, with anxiety 

* Mr. Cooper, the celebrated American novelist, and Allan Cunningham 
have both chosen Paul Jones as the hero of romances, very different in char 
acter, but equally admirable each in its peculiar style. Mr. Cunningham has 
certainly in many instances made wild work with the sober facts of history , 
and, considering the very recent period in which his hero flourished, takes 
larger poetical license than is quite admissible. The charms and accomplish- 
ments allotted to some of Paul's female relatives would probably have been 
disclaimed by these ladies if purchased at the expense of the fair and spotless 
fame of their maternal ancestor. However, if Mr. Cunningham imagined this 
cast of character best suited to his purposes, there is no great harm done 
Few live to feel offence, — none to believe in those romantic passages, which 
owe their existence solely to the imagination of the poet. In painting Scot 
tish scenery, and embodying romantic tradition, Mr. Cunningham is in his 
work as much at home as is the author of" The Pilot" in those fields of ocean 
which, as a novelist, he at present " possesses as his own domain." 



A FLEET ENCOUNTERED. 121 

corresponding to the deep interest of the game. No account 
of this memorable engagement can equal the simple and ani- 
mated narrative of the main actor, which we purpose to adopt. 
It is to be noticed, that while Jones engaged the Serapis, the 
Pallas fought the Countess of Scarborough. The commence- 
ment of the engagements was simultaneous, but the Countess 
of Scarborough had struck while the Serapis still held desper- 
ately out. 

" On the 21st," says Jones, " we saw and chased two sail 
orTFlamborough Head; the Pallas chased in the N. E. quarter, 
while the Bon Homme Richard, followed by the Vengeance, 
chased in the S. W.; the one I chased, a brigantine collier in 
ballast, belonging to Scarborough, was soon taken, and sunk 
immediately afterwards, as a fleet then appeared to the south 




Meeting of the fleets. 



ward. This was so late in the day, that I could not come up 
with the fleet before night ; at length, however, I got so near 
one of them as to force her to run ashore between Flam- 
borough Head and the Spurn. Soon after I took another, a 
brigantine from Holland, belonging to Sunderland, and at day- 
light the next •morning, seeing a fleet steering towards me 
from the Spurn, I imagined them to be a convoy bound from 
London for Leith, which had been for some time expected. 
One of them had a pendant hoisted, and appeared to be a ship 
11 



122 ADVENTURE OFF THE HUMBER. 

of force. They had not, however, courage to come on, but 
kept back, all except the one which seemed to be armed, ana 
that one also kept to windward, very near the land, and on 
the edge of dangerous shoals, where I could not with safety 
approach. This induced me to make a signal for a pilot, and 
soon afterwards two pilots' boats came oft'. They informed 
me that a ship that wore a pendant was an armed merchant- 
man, and that a king's frigate lay there in sight, at anchor 
within the Humber, awaiting to take under convoy a number 




Adventure off the Humber. 



of merchant ships bound to the northward. The pilots 
imagined the Bon Homme Richard to be an English ship of 
war, and consequently communicated to me the private signal 
which they had been required to make. I endeavoured by 
this means to decoy the ships out of the port ; but the wind 
then changing, and, with the tide, becoming ■ unfavourable 
for them, the deception had not the desired effect, and they 
wisely put back. The entrance of the Humber is exceedingly 
difficult and dangerous, and as the Pallas was not in sight, I 



THE CHASE. 123 

thought it imprudent to remain off the entrance, therefore 
steered out again to join the Pallas ofFFlamborough Head. In 
the night we saw and chased two ships until three o'clock in 
the morning, when, being at a very small distance from them, I 
made the private signal of reconnoissance, which I had given 
to each captain before I sailed from Groix : one half of the 
answer only was returned. In this position both sides lay to 
till daylight, when the ships proved to be the Alliance and 
the Pallas. 

" On the morning of that day, the 23d, the brig from Hol- 
land not being in sight, we chased a brigantine that appeared 
laying to, to windward. About noon we saw and chased a 
large ship that appeared coming round Flamborough Head 
from the northward, and at the same time I manned and 
armed one of the pilot-boats to send in pursuit of the brigan- 
tine, which now appeared to be the vessel that I had forced 
ashore. Soon after this a fleet of forty-one sail appeared off 
Flamborough Head, bearing N. N. E. This induced me to 
abandon the single ship which had then anchored in Burlington 
Bay ; I also called back the pilot-boat, and hoisted a signal 
for a general chase. When the fleet discovered us bearing 
down, all the merchant ships crowded sail towards the shore. 
The two ships of war that protected the fleet at the same time 
steered from the land, and made the disposition for battle. In 
approaching the enemy, I crowded every possible sail, and made 
the signal for the line of battle, to which the Alliance showed 
no attention. Earnest as I was for the action, I could not 
reach the commodore's ship until seven in the evening, being 
then within pistol-shot, when he hailed the Bon Homme 
Richard. We answered him by firing a whole broadside. 

" The battle being thus begun, was continued with unremit- 
ting fury. Every method was practised on both sides to gain 
an advantage, and rake each other ; and I must confess that 
the enemy's ship, being much more manageable than the Bon 
Homme Richard, gained thereby several times an advanta- 



124 



THE BATTLE BEGUN. 




The Richard and Serapis. Beginning of the action. 



creous situation, in spite of my best endeavours to prevent it. 
As I had to deal with an enemy of greatly superior force, I 
was under the necessity of closing with him, to prevent the 
advantage which he had over me in point of manoeuvre. It 
was my intention to lay the Bon Homme Richard athwart the 
enemy's bow ; but as that operation required great dexterity 
in the management of both sails and helm, and some of our 
braces being shot away, it did not exactly succeed to my 
wish. The enemy's bowsprit, however, came over the Bon 
Homme Richard's poop by the mizen-mast, and I made both 
ships fast together in that situation, which, by the action of 
tiie wind on the enemy's sails, forced her stern close to the 
Bon Homme Richard's bow, so that the ships lay square 
alongside of each other, the yards being all entangled, and the 
cannon of each ship touching the opponent's. When this 
position took place, it was eight o'clock, previous to which the 



CLOSE ACTION. 



12* 




The Richard and Serapis. Close action. 



Bon Homme Richard had received sundry eighteen-pound 
shots below the water, and leaked very much. My battery 
of twelve-pounders, on which I had placed my chief depend- 
ence, being commanded by Lieutenant Dale and Colonel 
Weibert, and manned principally with American seamen and 
French volunteers, was entirely silenced and abandoned. As 
to the six old eighteen-pounders that formed the battery of the 
lower gun-deck, they did no service whatever, except tiring 
eight shot in all. Two out of three of them burst at the first 
fire, and killed almost all the men who were stationed to man- 
age them. Before this time, too, Colonel de Chamillard, who 
commanded a party of twenty soldiers on the poop, had aban- 
doned that station, after having lost some of his men. I haa 
now only two pieces of cannon, (nine-pounders,) on the quarter- 
deck, that were not silenced, and not one of the heavier cannon 
was fired during the rest of the action. The purser, M. 
Mease, who commanded the guns on the quarter-deck, being 
dangerously wounded in the head, I was obliged to fill his 
place, and with great difficulty rallied a few men, and shifted 
over one of the lee quarter-deck guns, so that we afterwards 
played three pieces of nine-pounders upon the enemy. Th« 
11 * 



1^6 THE RICHARD AND SERAPIS. 

tops alone seconded the fire of this little battery, and held out 
bravely during the whole of the action, especially the main- 
top, where Lieutenant Stack commanded. I directed the fire 
of one of the three cannon against the main-mast, with double- 
headed shot, while the other two were exceedingly well served 
with grape and canister shot, to silence the enemy's musketry 
and clear her decks, which was at last effected. The enemy 
were, as I have since understood, on the instant of calling for 
quarters, when the cowardice or treachery of three of my 
under-officers induced them to call to the enemy. The Eng- 
lish commodore asked me if I demanded quarters, and 
having answered him in the most determined negative, they 
renewed the battle with double fury. They were unable to 
stand the deck ; but the fire of their cannon, especially the 
lower battery, which was entirely formed of ten-pounders, 
was incessant ; both ships were set on fire in various places, 
and the scene was dreadful beyond the reach of language. 
To account for the- timidity of my three under-officers, I mean 
the gunner, the carpenter, and the master-at-arms, I must ob- 
serve, that the two first were slightly wounded, and, as the 
ship had received various shot under water, and one of the 
pumps being shot away, the carpenter expressed his fears that 
she would sink, and the other two concluded that she was 
sinking, which occasioned the gunner to run aft on the poop, 
without my knowledge, to strike the colours. Fortunately 
for me, a cannon-ball had done that before, by carrying away 
the ensign-staff; he was therefore reduced to the necessity of 
sinking, as he supposed, or of calling for quarter, and he pre- 
ferred the latter. 

" All this time the Bon Homme Richard had sustained the 
action alone, and the enemy, though much superior in force, 
would have been very glad to have got clear, as appears by 
tneir own acknowledgments, and by their having let go an 
ancnor „ne instant that I laid them on board, by which means 




(128> 



SITUATION OF THE RICHARD. 129 

they would have escaped, had* I not made them well last to 
the Bon Homme Richard. 

" At last, at half-past nine o'clock, the Alliance appeared, 
and I now thought the battle at an end ; but, to my utter as- 
tonishment, he discharged a broadside full into the stern of 
the Bon Homme Richard. We called to him for God's sake 
to forbear firing into the Bon Homme Richard; yet they 
passed along the off-side of the ship, and continued firing. 
There was no possibility of his mistaking the enemy's ships 
for the Bon Homme Richard, there being the most essential 
difference in their appearance and construction. Besides, it 
was then full moonlight, and the sides of the Bon Homme 
Richard were all black, while the sides of the prize were all 
yellow. Yet, for the greater security, I showed the signal of 
our reconnoissance, by putting out three lanterns, one at the 
head, another at the stern, and the third in the middle, in a 
horizontal line. Every tongue cried that he was firing into 
the wrong ship, but nothing availed ; he passed round, firing 
into the Bon Homme Richard's head, stern, and broadside, 
and by one of his volleys killed several of my best men, and 
mortally wounded a good officer on the forecastle only. My 
situation was really deplorable; the Bon Homme Richard 
received various shot under water from the Alliance ; the 
leak gained on the pumps, and the fire increased much on 
board both ships. Some officers persuaded me to strike, of 
whose courage and good sense I entertain a high opinion. 
My treacherous master-at-arms let loose all my prisoners 
without my knowledge, and my prospects became gloomy 
indeed. I would not, however, give up the point. The 
enemy's main-mast began to shake, their firing decreased fast 
ours rather increased, and the British colours were struck at 
half an hour past ten o'clock. 

" This prize proved to be the British ship of war the Sera- 
pis, a new ship of forty-four-guns, built on the most approved 
construction, with two complete batteries, one of them o 



i 30 CONDITION OF THE RICHARD. 

eighteen-poundcrs, and commanded by the brave Commodore 
Richard Pearson. I had yet two enemies to encounter, far 
more formidable than the Britons, — I mean fire and water. 
The Serapis was attacked only by the first, but the Bon 
Homme Richard was assailed by both ; there was five feet 
water in the hold, and though it was moderate from the ex- 
plosion of so much gunpowder, yet the three pumps that re- 
mained could with difficulty only keep the water from gain- 
ing. The fire broke out in various parts of the ship in spite 
of all the water that could be thrown in to quench it, and at 
at length broke out as low as the powder-magazine, and 
within a few inches of the powder. In that dilemma I took 
out the powder upon deck, ready to be thrown overboard at 
the last extremity, and it was ten o'clock the next day (the 
24th,) before the fire was entirely extinguished. With respect 
to the situation of the Bon Homme Richard, the rudder was 
cut entirely off, the stern-frame and transoms were almost 
entirely cut away, and the timbers by the lower deck, espe- 
cially from the main-mast towards the stern, being greatly 
decayed with age, were mangled beyond my power of de- 
scription, and a person must have been an eye-witness to 
form a just idea of the tremendous scene of carnage, wreck, 
and ruin, which everywhere appeared. Humanity cannot 
but recoil from the prospect of such finished horror, and 
lament that war sl/ould be capable of producing such, fatal 
consequences. 

" After the carpenters, as w 7 ell as Captain Cottineau and 
other men of sense, had well examined and surveyed the ship, 
(which was not finished before five in the evening,) I found 
every person to be convinced that it was impossible to keep 
the Bon Homme Richard afloat, so as to reach a port, if the 
wind should increase, it being then only a very moderate 
breeze T had but little time to remove my wounded, which 
now became unavoidable, and which was effected in the 
course of the night and next morning. I was determined to 



THE RICHARD SINKS. 131 

keep the Bon Homme Richard afloat, and, if possible, to 
bring her into port. For that purpose, the first lieutenant of 
the Pallas, continued on board with a party of men, to attend 
the pumps, with boats in waiting, ready to take them on 
board in case the water should gain on them too fast. The 
wind augmented in the night, and the next day, the 25th, so 
that it was impossible to prevent the good old ship from sink- 
ing. They did not abandon her till after nine o'clock ; the 
water was then up to the lower deck, and a little after ten I 
saw, with inexpressible grief, the last glimpse of the Bon 
Homme Richard. No lives were lost with the ship, but it was 
impossible to save the stores of any sort whatever. I lost 
even the best part of my clothes, books and papers; and 
several of my officers lost all their clothes and effects. 




Sinking of the Bon Homme Richard. 



" Having thus endeavoured to give a clear and simple 
relation of the circumstances and events that have attended 
the little armament under my command, I shall freely sub- 
mit mv conduct therein to the censure of my superiors and 



[-4 ; VILLANY OF LANDA1S. 

the impartial public. I beg leave, however, to observe, thai 
the force that was put under my command was far from 
being well composed, and as the great majority of the actors 
in it have appeared bent on the pursuit of interest only, I am 
exceedingly sorry that they and I have been at all concerned." 
Such is the despatch which Commodore Jones transmitted 
from the Texel to Dr. Franklin, and afterwards to Congress. 
It is painful to observe how often he is forced to complain of 
the sordidness or cowardice of his associates. To a generous 
and elevated mind nothing could have been more humiliating 
than this necessity. The pursuit of " interest alone" with 
which he so frequently charges his associates, is, however, a 
positive virtue compared with the gratuitous villany imputed 
to Landais, the commander of the Alliance. The alleged 
conduct of this person, particularly during the engagement 
between the Bon Homme Richard and the Serapis, was so 
daring in atrocity and treachery as to exceed all reasonable 
belief, were it not solemnly asserted, as beyond all doubt it 
was firmly believed, by Jones. The general conduct of Lan- 
dais was that of a malignant madman, as much incited by 
the prevailing influence of frenzy as actuated by deliberate 
villany. His behaviour during the whole cruise was made 
the subject of a set of charges drawn up by Jones in coming 
into the Texel, which were attested, in whole or in part, by 
most of the officers of the Bon Homme Richard and the Alli- 
ance. The fact of Landais firing into the Bon Homme 
Richard is also confirmed by the Iog-book,+ which was pre- 
served when the ship sunk, and by a very interesting and 
seaman-like narrative of the" engagement, drawn up by Mr. 
f)ale,t then first lieutenant of the ship. The brilliant success 
^ 

* )"'•!& lettered volume, after many adventures by land and water, in 
Ei'irn >•• and America, is now in the possession of Mr. George Napier, advocate 

I Thi* gentleman vas subsequently a Commodore in the service of tin: 
United St-tes. 



DESPATCH TO FRANKLIN. 



133 



of Jones at this time, though far short of his own hopes and 
projects, gave him a right to speak out on affairs which left 
a deeper sting in his mind than even the perfidy ol Landais. 
He thus concludes his despatch : — 




Commodore Dale. 



" I am in the highest degree sensible of the singular atten- 
tions which I have experienced from the Court of France, 
which I shall remember with perfect gratitude until the end 
of my life, and will always endeavour to merit, while I can 
consistent with my honour continue in the public service. I 
must speak plainly ; as I have been always honoured, with the 
fuli confidence of Congress, and as I also flattered mvself 



134 DESPATCH TO FRANKLIN. 

with eujoying in some measure the confidence of the court of 
France, I could not but be astonished at the conduct of Mon- 
sieur de Chaumont, when, in the moment of my departure 
from Groix, he produced a paper, a concordat, for me to sign, 
in common with the officers whom I had commissioned but 
a few days before. Had that paper, or even a less dishon- 
ourable one, been proposed to me at the beginning, I would 
have rejected it with just contempt, and the word deplacement, 
among others, should have been necessary. I cannot, how- 
ever, even now suppose that he was authorized by the court 
to make such a bargain with me. Nor can I suppose that 
the minister of the Marine meant that M. de Chaumont should 
consider me merely as a colleague with the commanders of the 
other ships, and communicate to them not only all he knew 
bu f all he thought respecting our destination and operations. 
M. de Chaumont has made me various reproaches on account 
of the expense of the Bon Homme Richard, wherewith I can- 
not think I have been justly chargeable. M. de Chamillard 
can attest that the Bon Homme Richard was at last far from 
being well fitted or armed for war. If any person or persons 
who have been charged with the expense of that armament 
have acted wrong, the fault must not be laid to my charge. 
I had no authority to superintend that armament, and the 
persons who had authority were so far from giving me what 
I thought necessary, that M. de Chaumont even refused, 
among other things, to allow me irons to secure the prisoners 
of war. # 

" In short, while my life remains, if I have any capacity to 
render good and acceptable services to the common cause, no 
man will step forth with greater cheerfulness and alacrity 
than myself; but I am not made to be dishonoured, nor can I 
accept of the half-confidence of any man living. Of course I 
cannot, consistent with my honour, and a prospect of success, 
undertake future expeditions, unless when the object and des- 
tination is communicated to me alone, and to no other person 



JONES'S SPIES. 135 

in the marine line. In cases where troops are embarked, a 
like confidence is due alone to their commander-in-chief. On 
no other condition will I ever undertake .the chief command 
of a private expedition ; and when I do not command in chief, 
I have no desire to be in the secret." 

In the memorial drawn up for the private perusal of the 
king of France, Jones says that it was his intention at this 
time to cruise off the south-west of Ireland for twelve or 
fifteen days, in order to intercept the English homeward-bound 
East India ships, which he had been informed would return 
without convoy, and sail for this point of land. This purpose, 
which he confined to his own breast, and which would have 
been rendered abortive by the misconduct of Landais, was 
quite compatible with the other objects of the cruise, whether 
these were the West India, or Hudson's Bay ships, or the 
Baltic fleet. 

The earliness and accuracy of the information which Jones 
procured while he lay in the various harbours of France is 
not a little remarkable. Instead of receiving intelligence 
from the American ministers, he was enabled, through his 
own private channels in England and other quarters, to trans- 
mit to them information of the sailing of fleets and of the 
strength of convoys. His former connexions and mode of 
life may have given him some facilities; and money, the 
universal agent, never appears to have been with him an ob- 
ject of any consideration beyond its value as a means of 
obtaining professional advancement. He was able to supply 
the French Admiral, Count d'Orvilliers, with important infoi 
mation from London, of the sailing of a large West India 
fleet, and even to acquaint him with private transactions on 
»oard the squadrons of Keppel and Byron. 

Meanwhile the squadron of Jones, which the narrative has 

jft behind, continued to be tossed about till the 3rd of October, 

when it came to anchor in the Texel, contrary to the judgment 

of the commodore, who wished to gain the French harbour 



136 ARRIVAL OF THE SQUADRON. 

of Dunkirk, but was, he says, overruled by his officers. The 
rendezvous he found, was the cause of much personal vexation 
to himself, though it proved of ultimate advantage to America, 
by hurrying on the period when the Dutch were forced from 
their politic neutrality. The political importance of this mea- 
sure might have been foreseen by Franklin, when in the pre- 
vious summer he directed Jones, on finishing his northern 
cruise, to take shelter in the Texel. By doing so, the Ameri- 
can minister greatly increased the perplexity of their High 
Mightinesses, on whom the cabinet of London already — and 
with good reason — looked with suspicious eyes. By this step 
the Dutch were in effect precipitated into the war rather sooner 
than suited their crafty and selfish policy, which, in shuffling 
with all parties, sought to profit by all. By compelling Eng- 
land to declare war, and the Dutch to declare openly for thj 
United States, an end was virtually put to a contest, in which 
Britain was left to contend single-handed with her refractory 
colonies, then backed by France, Spain, and Holland. 

Though the squadron of Jones had failed in its main purpose, 
and had neither captured fleets, nor put wealthy cities to ran- 
som, the blow struck at the maritime pride of England could 
not fail to be highly gratifying to the Americans. Dr. Frank- 
lin immediately wrote, warmly congratulating the victor. — 
" For some days,"' says Franklin, " after the arrival of yoin 
express, scarce anything was talked of at Paris and Versailles. 
but your cool conduct and persevering bravery during that 
terrible conflict. You may believe that the impression on my 
mind was not less strong than that on others, — but I do not 
choose to say in a letter to yourself all I think on such an 
occasion. 

" The ministry are much dissatisfied with Captain Landais, 
and Monsieur de Sartine has signified to me in writing, that 
it is expected that I should send for him to Paris, and call him 
to account for his conduct, particularly for deferring so long 
his coming to your assistance ; by which means, it is suo[ osed. 



JONES RECEIVES THANK?. 137 

the States lost M>itie ot* their valuable citizens, and the king 
lost many oi hi* subjects, volunteers in your ship, together with 
the ship itself. 

••I have, accordingly, written to him this day, acquainting 

him. that he is charged with disobedience of orders in the 
cruise, and neglect oi his duty in the engagement : that a 

court-martial being at this time inconvenient, if not impractica- 
ble. I would give him an earlier opportunity of offering what 
he has to say in his justification, and for that purpose direct 
him to render himself immediately here, bringing with him 
such papers or testimonies as he may think useful in his de- 
5. I know not whether he will obey my orders, nor what 
the ministry would do with him if he comes; but I suspect 
that they may. by some of their concise operations, save the 
trouble oi a court-martial. It will, however, be well for you 
to furnish me with what you may judge proper to support 
the charges against him, that I may be able to give a just 
and clear account to Congress. In the mean time it will be 
necessary, if he should refuse to come, that you should put 
him under an arrest, and in that case, as well as if he comes, 
that you should either appoint some person to the command, 
or take it upon yourself; for I know oi no person to recom- 
mend to you as tit for that station. 

" I am uneasy about your prisoners. (504 in number.) — I 
wish they were safe in France. You will then have com- 
pleted the glorious work oi giving liberty to all the Ameri- 
cans that have so long languished for it in the British 
::s.'" 

Jones also received the thanks of the Due de la Yauguyon, 
the French ambassador at the Hague, and the congratulations 
of numerous friends and admirers. 

And now commenced those scenes of diplomatic altercation 

ween the States oi Holland and the British ambassador, 

Sir Joseph Yorke, which in the following year ended in the 

declaration oi war. The Dutch had already committed 

12* 



138 CONDUCT OF HOLLAND. 

many virtual infractions of the treaty of alliance with Britain. 
li was from Holland that France openly obtained her mari- 
time stores. But a greater eye-sore was the American 
squadron and its daring commander, with the captured 
frigates, riding in triumph in the Texel. Jones also appeared 
openly at Amsterdam. He was allowed to establish an 
hospital in the forts of the Texel, for his wounded men and 
his wounded prisoners; though in this object of common 
humanity Sir Joseph Yorke readily concurred. 

The squadron came into the Texel on the 3d October, and 
on the 13th, Sir Joseph Yorke presented a brief and energetic 
memorial, peremptorily demanding that the captured frigates 
should be stopped in the Texel — the frigates " taken by one 
Paul Jones, a subject of the King of Great Britain, who, ac- 
cording to treaties and the laws of war, falls under the 
class of rebels and pirates." 

Jones, though he must have been prepared for the demand, 
was, it may be presumed, not a little indignant at the uncere- 
monious style in which he was designated by the English am- 
bassador, — " that little thing, Sir Joseph," as he pettishly terms 
him. In this emergency he endeavoured to secure the friend- 
ship of certain powerful individuals. With a young, brave, 
and, above all, a successful commander, there is ever a ready 
sympathy ; and even at this time, though the show of peace 
was still sedulously kept up, the cause of America had many 
warm friends among the Dutch, especially in the maritime 
towns. 

It would have required greater magnanimity than most 
men are endowed with, had Jones forgiven the appellations 
bestowed on him, especially if any lurking consciousness 
rankled in his mind that his character and position were equi- 
vocal, and apt, at least in England, to be misconstrued. The 
distrust evinced by Le Ray Chaumont, and the consequent 
restraints imposed on his freedom as a commander, had 
already been sufficiently galling; and this was a fresh corrosion 



CAPTAIN PEARSON REWARDED. 139 

of the same sore. In a statement made long afterwards, Jones 
mentions that Sir Joseph Yorke having failed to obtain his 
person from the Dutch government, endeavoured to have him 
privately kidnapped, — a thing in itself extremely improbable* 
and for which there was, in all likelihood, no other foundation 
than the gossip of Amsterdam. Sir Joseph never even 
directly asked that Jones should be given up, while he loudly 
reiterated his demand for the restitution of the captured 
frigates. 

The firmness and address displayed by Sir Joseph Yorke 
on this occasion did credit to his diplomatic abilities. He 
had resided long at the Hague, and had obtained great in- 
fluence with the Prince of Orange and what may be called the 
court-party. His services on this occasion were afterwards 
rewarded by a peerage. Captain Pearson was also subse- 
quently distinguished by many marks of the confidence and 
approbation of his sovereign. The defeated party were in- 
deed more highly rewarded than the victor ; for the subse- 
quent honours heaped on Jones were more the consequence 
of dexterous management at Versailles, six months after the 
affair took place, than the natural and spontaneous fruits of 
his brilliant achievement. Immediately on his exchange, 
Captain Pearson received the honour of knighthood, which, 
following this period of eclipse, must have been peculiarly 
gratifying to bis feelings; and the Royal-Exchange Assu 
ranee Company presented him and Captain Piercy of the 
Countess of Scarborough with services of plate " for their 
gallant defence of the Baltic fleet." 

The peremptory demand of Sir Joseph Yorke, threw their 
High Mightinesses into no little perplexity. They were not 
yet prepared for war with England, nor did they wish to risk 
offending France, and alienating the affections of the young 
transatlantic republic, which might long remember unkind- 
ness, but would feel doubly grateful for succour shown in the 
season of adversity, and the struggle for existence. The 



140 CONDUCT OF HOLLAND. 

States of Holland in those awkward circumstances tempo- 
rized with much dexterity, sheltering themselves under those 
cautious maxims of policy which had hitherto governed the 
United Provinces in questions of the like nature. These 
maxims dictated that they should decline deciding on the 
validity of captures in the open seas of vessels not belonging 
to their own subjects. They afforded at all times shelter in 
their harbours to all ships whatsoever, if driven in by stress 
of weather ; but compelled armed ships with their prizes to 
put to sea again as soon as possible, without permitting them 
to dispose of their cargoes ; and this conduct they were to 
follow in the case of Jones. 

This did not, however, extricate the Dutch government from 
the dilemma. As an American officer they durst not protect 
Jones, which would have been in effect a recognition of the 
rebellious colonies ; and the French commision under which it 
was alleged he acted could never be forthcoming. They 
therefore were compelled to order him to put to sea with his 
squadron forthwith, though they " declined to pass judgment 
on the person and prizes of Paul Jones." They also publicly 
forbade the ships to be furnished with naval or warlike stores, 
save such as were absolutely necessary to carry them to the 
first foreign port, " that all suspicion of their being furnished 
here may drop." 

It was even agreed, though the measure met with strong 
opposition, that the American squadron should be expelled by 
force from the Texel. This much was obtained by the firm- 
ness of Sir Joseph Yorke. 

The situation of Jones, all along unpleasant, was now 
become highly critical. The Dutch government, whom Sir 
Joseph neither suffered to slumber nor sleep, incessantly an- 
noyed the French ambassador, who in his turn assailed Jones. 
He was thus placed between two fires, threatened by the 
Dutch to be driven from the Texel, while English ships were 



JONES'S SITUATION. 141 

placed at its entrance to interrupt his exit, and while, " to make 
assurance double sure," light squadrons were cruising about 
in all directions to prevent his gaining any French or Spanish 
port, should he be fortunate enough to escape the vessels on 
the more immediate watch. So deep and galling was the 
wound this individual had inflicted on the national pride, that 
the capture of " one Paul Jones" would at this time have been 
more welcome to England than if she had conquered a rich 
argosy. 

One main object of Jones being ordered to the Texel on the 
termination of his northern cruise, was, as has been noticed, 
to convoy a French fleet with naval stores to Brest, and to 
get out the Indian. The same officious commissary, whose 
talkative propensities and suspicious disposition had so fre- 
quently baffled the projects of Jones, had again been at work ; 
and although the Dutch government might have winked at the 
sailing of the fleet under his convoy, the measure would have 
been rendered abortive by premature disclosure. Jones com- 
plained to Franklin, and to Sartine, the minister of the French 
marine, to whom during the time he lay in the Texel he had, 
as usual, been transmitting some of the many projects for 
maritime expeditions of which his scheming brain was ever so 
fertile. He also in this interval drew up a refreshing me- 
morial for Congress, containing a narrative of his professional 
life and services. 

Before receiving any answer to his communication to Sar- 
tine, Jones was ordered to attend the French ambassador at 
the Hague, the Due de la Vauguyon. He went privately to 
the Hague to avoid unnecessary offence, and at a long con- 
ference it was agreed that he should forthwith sail for Dun- 
kirk with his numerous prisoners. As they were now 
situated they could scarcely be considered in security, and 
both Franklin and Jones, as a personal kindness, had solicited 
and obtained the consent of the French government that 
these prisoners should be exchanged for the Americans, then 
prisoners in England. 



142 JONES'S LETTER 

The Serapis had been dismasted in the late engagement, 
and as it was probable that, even on the short voyage to 
Dunkirk, Jones might encounter his watchful foe in some 
force, it was necessary to refit his ship. For this purpose he 
went to Amsterdam. Thus time wore on. The English 
ambassador from remonstrances came to threats. The 
Dutch, driven to their wit's end, remonstrated and menaced 
by turns ; and Jones, unable to be longer silent, wrote as fol- 
lows to the French ambassador : — 

" On board the Bon Homme Richard's Prize the Ship of War Serapis. at the 
Texel, November 4th, 1779." 

" My Lord, 

" This morning the commandant of the Road sent me 
word to come and speak to him on board his ship. He had 
before him on the table a letter which he said was from the 
Prince of Orange. He questioned me very closely whether 
I had a French commission, and, if I had, he almost insisted 
upon seeing it. In conformity to your advice " Cet avis 
donne au commencement n'etoit plus de saison depuisl'admis- 
sion de l'escadre sous Pavilion Americain," I told him that 
my French commission not having been found among my 
papers since the loss of the Bon Homme Richard, I feared it 
had gone to the bottom in that ship ; but that, if it was really 
lost, it would be an easy matter to procure a duplicate of it 
from France. The commandant appeared to be very uneasy 
and anxious for my departure. I have told him that as there 
are eight oi cne enemy's ships laying wait for me at the south 
entrance, and four more at the north entrance of the port, I 
was unable to fight more than three times my force, but that 
he might rest assured of my intention to depart with the 
utmost expedition, whenever I found a possibility to go clear. 

" I should be very happy, my Lord, if I could tell you of 
my being ready. I should have departed long ago, if I had 
met with common assistance ; but for a fortnight past I have 



TO THE AMBASSADOR. 143 

every day expected the necessary supply of water from 
Amsterdam in cisterns, and I am last night informed that it 
cannot be had without I send up water-casks. The provision, 
too, that was ordered the day I returned to Amsterdam from 
the Hague, is not yet sent down; and the spars that have 
been sent from Amsterdam are spoiled in the making. None 
of the iron- work that was ordered for the Serapis is yet com- 
pleted, so that I am, even to this hour, in want of hinges to 
hang the lower- gun-ports. My officers and men lost their 
clothes and beds in the Bon Homme Richard, and they have 
yet got no supply. The bread that has been twice a week 
sent down from Amsterdam to feed my people, has been, 
literally speaking, rotten, and the consequence is that they 
are falling sick. 

" It is natural also that they should be discontented, while I 
am not able to tell them that they will be paid the value of 
their property in the Serapis and Countess of Scarborough, if 
either or both of them should be lost or taken after sailing 
from hence. 

" Thus you see, my Lord, that my prospects are far from 
pleasing. I have but few men, and they are discontented. 
If you can authorize me to promise them, at all hazards, that 
their property in the prizes shall be made good, and that they 
shall receive the necessary clothing and bedding, &c, or 
money to buy them, I believe I shall soon be able to bring 
them again into a good humour. In the mean time I will 
send a vessel or two out to reconnoitre the offing and to 
bring me word. Whatever may be the consequence of my 
having put into this harbour, I must observe that it was done 
contrary to my opinion, and I consented to it only because 
the majority of my colleagues were earnest for it," &c. <fcc. 

The French government, to rid themselves of farther im 
portunity, now fell on a new expedient. The cruise was sud 
denly declared at an end, and the ships were dismissed, 
Franklin agreed to place the captured frigates under the flag 



JONES IN THE ALLIANCE. 

France, and that Jones should be removed to the only ship 
now ostensibly American, the Alliance, which, on Landais 
having been ordered to Paris, to answer to the plenipoten- 
tiaries for his misconduct on the cruise, had been left without 
a commander. 

Jones received this intimation with disgust and chagrin; 
but such were the orders of Sartine and Franklin, such the 
course sound policy dictated ; and after an altercation, last- 
ing, he states, for thirteen hours, with the French ambassador 
at the Hague, he most reluctantly left the Serapis, whose deck 
seemed the theatre of his glory, and went on board the Alli- 
ance. The squadron soon afterwards sailed under a Dutch 
convoy, and Jones was left alone in his new ship. His 
French commission had never yet been produced ; the Eng- 
lish ambassador had repeatedly alleged that he held no legal 
commission from any sovereign ; and to relieve the Dutch 
government from their dilemma, and, probably to ensure the 
personal safety of Jones in case of the worst, a regular com- 
mission was now tendered him by the ministers of his Most 
Christian Majesty, but of a kind so degrading that there is no 
doubt he would, far rather than have accepted it, have chosen 
the alternative of falling into the power of the English. 
Whatever were his personal difficulties, he was at this time 
in " the blaze of his fame," " talked of," says Franklin, " at 
Paris and Versailles," celebrated throughout Europe and 
America. His temper and blood were at no time very cool 
on sudden excitement, and the excess of his indignation 
may be imagined when he received the insulting offer of a 
Letter of Marque. We know not what to make of the fre- 
quent boasts of Jones in after-periods of life, of never ac- 
cepting any commission save from Congress. The con- 
cordat of Le Ray Chaumont, and the Letter of Marque of 
Sartine, and the Due de la Vauguyon, it must be confessed, 
offered but slight temptation. Jones, though far from being 
naturally inclined either to conceal or depreciate his profes- 



LETTER OF MARQUE OFFERED AND REFUSED. 145 

sional talents and personal services, never over-estimated 
himself half so much as he was at this time undervalued by 
the vacillating and capricious government with which he had 
to do. If the true ability of a statesman is best seen in his 
capacity for selecting and managing the instruments of his 
power, Sartine in this instance, as in many others, sadly be- 
trayed his own incapacity. Under the first galling feelings 
of this insult, Jones wrote the following spirited letter to the 
French ambassador. It is one of the best productions of his 
pen, precisely because it is the spontaneous dictate of the 
most honourable impulses of his spirit : — 

" To His Excellency the Due de la Vauguyon, Ambassador from France, at 
the Hague. 

" Alliance, Texel, December 13th, 1779. 
" My Lord, 

" Perhaps there are many men in the world who would 
esteem as an honour the commission that I have this day re- 
fused. My rank from the beginning knew no superior in the 
marine of America, how then must I be humbled were I to 
accept a letter-of-marque ! — I should, my Lord, esteem my- 
self inexcusable, were I to accept even a commission of equal 
or superior denomination to that I bear, unless I were pre- 
viously authorized by Congress, or some other competent 
authority in Europe. And I must tell you, that, on my ar- 
rival at Brest from the Irish Channel, Count D'Orvilliers 
offered to procure for me from Court a commission of " Cap- 
tain de Vaisseaux," which I did not then accept for the 
same reason, although the war between France and England 
was not then begun, and of course the commission of 
France would have protected me from an enemy of superior 
force. 

" It is a matter of the highest astonishment to me, that, 
after so many compliments and fair professions, the Court 
should offer the present insult to my understanding, and sup- 
pose me capable of disgracing my present commission, j 
13 



146 REMONSTRANCE. 

confess that I never merited all the praise bestowed on my 
past conduct, but I also feel that I have far less merited such a 
reward. Where profession and practice are so opposite, I 
am no longer weak enough to form a wrong conclusion. 
They may think as they please of me ; for w 7 here I cannot 
continue my esteem, praise or censure from any man is to me 
a matter of indifference. 

" I am much obliged to them, however, for having at last 
fairly opened my eyes, and enabled me to discover truth from 
falsehood. 

" The prisoners shall be delivered agreeable to the orders 
which you have done me the honour to send me from his Ex- 
cellency the American ambassador in France. 

" I will also with great pleasure, not only permit a part of 
my seamen to go on board the ships under your Excellency's 
orders, but I will also do my utmost to prevail with them to 
embark freely ; and if I can now or hereafter, by any other 
honourable means, facilitate the success or the honour of his 
Majesty's arms, I pledge myself to you as his ambassador, 
that none of his own subjects would bleed in his cause with 
greater freedom than myself, an American. 

" It gives me the more pain, my Lord, to write this letter, 
because the Court has enjoined you to prepare what would 
destroy my peace of mind, and my future veracity in the 
opinion of the world. 

" When, with the consent of Court, and by order of the 
American ambassador, I gave American commissions to 
French officers, I did not fill up those commissions to com- 
mand privateers, nor even for a rank equal to that of their 
commissions in the Marine of France. They were promoted 
to rank far superior, — and why 1 — not from personal friend- 
ship, nor from my knowledge of their services and abilities, 
(the men and their characters being entire strangers to me,) 
but from the respect which I believed America would wish to 
show for the service of France. 



LETTER TO FRANKLIN. 147 

" While I remained eight months seemingly forgot by the 

Court at Brest, many commissions such as that in question, 

were offered to me ; and I believe, (when I am in pursuit of 

plunder?) I can still obtain such an one without application to 

Court. 

" I hope, my Lord, that my behaviour through life will ever 

entitle me to the continuance of your good wishes and opinion, 

and that you will take occasion to make mention of the warm 

and personal affection with which my heart is impressed 

towards his Majesty. 

"I am," &c. &c. 

This letter Jones enclosed to Franklin, to whom he gave 
his passionate feelings fuller breath in an epistle very charac- 
teristic both of the man and the seaman. " I hope," he says, 
" that the within copy of my letter to the Due de la Vau 
guyon will meet your approbation; for I am persuaded that 
it never could be your intention or wish that I should be made 

the tool of any great r whatever ; or that the commission 

of America should be overlaid by the dirty piece of parch- 
ment which I have this day rejected ! They have played 
upon my good humour too long already, but the spell is at last 
dissolved.. They would play me off with assurance of the 
personal and particular esteem of the king, to induce me to 
do what would render me contemptible even in the eyes of 
my own servants ! Accustomed to speak untruths themselves, 
they would also have me to give under my hand that I am a 
liar and a scoundrel. They are mistaken, and I would tell 
them what you did to your naughty servant. * We have too 
contemptible an opinion of one another's understanding to live 

together.' I could tell them too, that if M de C * had 

not taken such safe precautions to keep me honest by means 
of his famous concordat, and to support me by so many able 
colleagues, these great men would not have been reduced to 

* De la Ray Chaumont. 



148 M. DUMAS. 

such mean shifts ; for the prisoners could have been landed 
at Dunkirk the day that I entered the Texel, and I could have 
brought in double the numbers." 

The whole of these effusions were submitted to M. Dumas, 
a new friend Jones had acquired, who had lately been ap- 
pointed agent for American affairs at Amsterdam.* 

The letter of Jones to the ambassador of France produced 
the desired effect. A soothing epistle was despatched to the 
sturdy and indignant Anglo-American. " I perceive with 
pain, my dear commodore," says the duke, " that you do not 
view your situation in the right light ; and I can assure you 
that the ministers of the king have no intention to cause you 
the least disagreeable feeling, as the honourable testimonials 
of the esteem of his majesty which I send you ought to con- 
vince you. I hope you will not doubt the sincere desire 
with w^hich you have inspired me to procure you every satis- 
faction you may merit. It cannot fail to incite you to give 
new proofs of your zeal for the common cause of France 
and America. I flatter myself to renew, before long, the 
occasion, and procure you the means to increase still more 
the glory you have already acquired. I am already occu- 
pied with all the interest I promised you ; and if my views 
are realized, as I have every reason to believe, you will be at 
all events perfectly content; but I must pray you not to 
fiinder my project by delivering yourself to the expression of 

* This gentleman is a most amusing specimen of the diplomatist in the 
small way, busy and bustling about nothing, shrouding every trifle in mystery ; 
— one who writes about " the great man," and hints obscurely at " the certain 
friend in high station," and intimates dark meanings through which every 
body could see, in any way save simply and directly. America was at this 
early stage of her history singularly prolific of these mysterious personages. 
Bancroft, Mr. W. Temple Franklin, who was, however, still a lad, and even 
Commodore Jones, disported themselves in this sort of innocent diplomacy, 
employing a cipher, or numbers, in their correspondence about their own 
personal affairs, as if the eyes of all the world had been watchful of their mo- 
tions. Franklin alone kept clear of this folly. His letters contain no blanks, 
no ominous stars, no mystification of important nothings. 



JONES'S ANSWER. 149 

those strong sensations to which you appear to give way, 
and for which there is really no foundation. You appear to 
possess full confidence in the justice and kindness of the king ; 
rely also upon tfo^ same sentiments on the part of his ministers.'* 
The " dear commodore" of the duke was somewhat molli- 
fied by this apology, but far from being satisfied ; nor did he 
slip so inviting an opportunity of proclaiming his grievances. 
" Were I to form," he says, " my opinion of the ministry from 
the treatment I experienced while at Brest, or from their 
want of confidence in me afterwards, exclusive of what has 
taken place since I had the misfortune to enter this port, I 
will appeal to your Excellency, as a man of candour and 
ingenuity, whether I ought to desire to prolong a connexion 
that has made me so unhappy, and wherein I have given so 
very little satisfaction. M. le Chevalier de Lironcourt has 
lately made me reproaches on account of the expense that, 
he says, France has been at to give me a reputation, in pre- 
ference to twenty captains of the royal navy, better qualified 
than myself, and who, each of them, solicited for the com- 
mand that was lately given to me ! 

" This, I confess, is quite new, and indeed surprising to me ; 
and, had I known it before I left France, I certainly should 
have, resigned in favour of the twenty men of superior merit. 
I do not, however, think that his first assertion is true ; for 
the ministers must be unworthy of their places were they 
capable of squandering the public money only to give an 
individual reputation ; and as to the second, I fancy the Court 
will not thank him for having given me that information, 
whether true or false. I may add here, that with a force so 
ill composed, and with powers so limited, I ran ten chances 
of ruin and dishonour for one of gaining reputation ; and had 
not the plea of humanity in favour of the unfortunate Ameri- 
cans in English dungeons superseded all considerations of 
self, I faithfully assure you, my lord, that I would not have 
proceeded under such circumstances from Groix. I do not 
13* 



150 SAILS FROM THE TEXEL. 

imbibe hasty prejudices against any individuals; but when 
many and repeated circumstances, conspiring in one point, 
have inspired me with disesteem towards any person, I must 
see convincing proof of reformation in such person before 
my heart can beat again with affection in his favour ; for the 
mind is free, and can be bound only by kind treatment." 

The insult, as he justly conceived it, which Jones had 
received from France, did not increase his inclination to 
hoist the flag of that nation on board of the Alliance ; nor 
had he longer any secret motive to refuse, or at least to delay 
obedience to the reiterated and peremptory mandate of the 
Dutch government, ordering him to leave the Texel. Ame- 
rica was now his sole hope — to reach its coasts his only aim. 
" I am not sorry," he writes to his friend Morris, " that my 
connexion with them (the French government) is at an end. 
In the course of that connexion I ran ten chances of ruin and 
dishonour for one of reputation ; and all the honour or profit 
that France could bestow should not tempt me again to 
undertake the same service, with an armament equally ill 
composed and with powers equally limited. It affords me the 
most exalted pleasure to reflect, that when I return to Ame- 
rica I can say I have served in Europe at my own expense, 
and without the fee or reward of a court. When the priso- 
ners we have taken are safely lodged in France, I shall have 
no further business in Europe, as the liberty of all our fellow- 
citizens who now suffer in English prisons will then be se 
cured." 

He was now detained only by contrary winds, and eagerly 
waited for a fair opportunity of eluding the vigilance of those 
on the watch to intercept him. After three months spent in 
continual altercation, imbittered by the animosity of Landais, 
the babbling and suspicions of Le Ray Chaumont, the con- 
duct of the French ministers, and the discontents of his offi- 
cers and men respecting the prize-money, Jcnes sailed from 
the Texel on the 27th December, 1779. 



EXCHANGE OF PRISONERS. 



J5I 




Robert Morris. 



The only consolation Jones received at this period was 
effecting the exchange of the American prisoners in England. 
This was, he said, " all the reward he wished." He had also 
wrung some promises from the ambassador in behalf of his 
discontented officers and crew, who, as the prizes had not 
been valued in Holland, and were liable to be retaken in get- 
ting into a French port, had no assurance that they would 
ever obtain any reward for their courage and their toil. The 
prizes sent into Bergen, in Norway, by Landais, had been 
claimed by the English consul, and given up by the Danish 



152 ESCAPES THE BRITISH FLEET. 

government who were very unlikely to grant the Americans 
any indemnity. Even more severely than these incidental 
hardships, Jones felt the grumbling of the French agents at 
the expense he necessarily incurred in refitting his ships. " Jt 
had cost France too much to give him fame," was the taunt- 
.ng observation bitterly felt and not easily forgotten. 

It must, under all the circumstances, have been with con 
siderable anxiety that Jones sailed from the Texel, with the 
alternative of rashly braving or fortunately eluding the Eng- 
lish : he was not in condition to meet them even in equal 
force. The Alliance, by the gross misconduct of Landais, 
who was as bad a seaman as he was an officer, was in the 
worst condition. The officers were, as Jones states, " idle and 
drunken; the men filthy and in bad subordination, and many 
of them sick of an epidemic illness ;" the vessel was. besides, 
badly armed, and the powder of bad quality. The last evil 
Jones remedied ; and, putting a bold face on the matter, 
whatever might be his secret feelings, he thus exultingly wrote 
Dumas, on leaving the Texel : — " Alliance at sea, 27th Decem- 
ber : — I am here, my dear sir, with a good wind at east, un- 
der my best American colours. So far you have your wish. 
What may be the event of this critical moment I know not; 
I am not, however, without good hopes." 

The memorial, drawn up by Jones himself for the King of 
France, contains the best account that is extant of his escape, 
and of the progress of this ticklish voyage. " He passed," 
he states, " along the Flemish banks, and, getting the wind- 
ward of the enemy's fleet of observation in the North Sea, 
he the next day passed through the Straits of Dover, in full 
view of the enemy's fleet in the Downs. The day following 
Captain Jones ran the Alliance past the Isle of Wight, in 
view of the enemy's fleet at Spithead, and in two days more 
got safe through the Channel, having passed by windward in 
sight of the enemy's large two-decked cruising ships. Cap- 
tain Jones wished to carry with him some prizes and prisoner? 



ARRIVAL AT L'ORlEiNT. 



153 




Escape of the Alliance. 



to France: but the Alliance, by the arrangement Captain 
Landais had made of the ballast at L'Orient, was out of trim, 
and could not sail fast, her sails being too thin and old for 
cold latitudes. He steered to the southward, and cruised for 
some days without success off Cape Finisterre. On the 16th 
of January, 1780, Captain Jones, to shun a gale of wind,, and 
procure a sound anchor, (for he had left the Texel with only 
one,) ran into Corogne. He was very kindly received in 
Spain, but sailed again, and arrived at Groix on the 10th 
February, having taken no prizes." 

On gaining L'Orient, Jones lost no time in beginning to re- 
fit his ships and obtain military stores. A board of Admiralty 
had by this time been established by Congress, and one of its 
first acts was to order home the Alliance. In making the 
ships under his command fit for sea, whether " in battle or in 
breeze," Jones never grudged or even thought of expense, 
and on the present occasion his professional liberality of 
spirit far outran the frugal genius of Franklin. The anxious 



154 THE ALLIANCE REFITTED. 

and almost pathetic remonstrances addressed to him by the 
republican sage are as amusing as they are characteristic. 
The court of France had demurred to incurring farther ex- 
pense for this refractory hero and his American ship. " The 
whole expense will fall upon me," cries Franklin, " and I am 
ill provided to bear it, having so many unexpected calls upon 
mc from all quarters. I therefore beg you would have mercy 
on me, put me to as little charge as possible, and take nothing 
you can possibly do without. As to sheathing with copper it 
is totally out of the question." 

By the middle of April, the Alliance (notwithstanding the 
prayers of Franklin) was, by the care of her commander, 
pronounced by himself one of the most complete frigates in 
France. 

Nearly a month before, the Alliance having been, as was 
said, ordered home to America with certain supplies of arms 
and warlike stores furnished by France, Franklin urged the 
immediate sailing of the ship as strongly as he could with 
propriety, and wished its commander a prosperous voyage. 
He even stretched a point to furnish those of the former crew 
of the Bon Homme Richard, now on board the Alliance, 
with a small sum of money, as they had not yet realized a sou 
of their prize-money. This was done to allay discontent and 
send the men home in good humour. But neither the com- 
modore nor his crew were yet in trim for sea. 

Jones had made repeated attempts to obtain an adjustment 
of the prize-money, and now meditated a journey to court 
ostensibly to solicit a final settlement. A person in office 
had about this time excited his indignation by meanly 
claiming the merit of some or all of his manifold projects ; 
and it is probable that various other motives and per- 
sonal interests disposed him to undertake this memorable 
journey. Having on a former occasion verified the truth of 
he maxim, which led him to give the celebrated name of 



JONES UOES TO VERSAILLES. 15^ 

Bon Homme Richard to his ship, he determined once more to 
speed his errand by doing it himself. He was aware that, 
though disliked or envied by the marine service of France 
he was popular with the Court and the Nation, who were 
about this time in the very height and fervour of the Ameri- 
can mania. On this knowledge he proceeded to Versailles. 




56 JONi^ AT COURT 




CHAPTER VII. 

ONES at no time neglected to 
keep himself alive in the me- 
mory of his court friends and 
official patrons, — a species of 
attention necessary to a pro- 
fessional man everywhere, at 
least in the commencement of 
his career, and particularly 
so at that period in France. 
While superintending the refitting of the Alliance, he had 
been corresponding with La Fayette, the Duke de la Roche- 
foucault, and others of his former great friends, and by them 
he might have been advised to repair to Versailles to claim 
justice for his people in the affair of the prize-money. If 
sucn was his only business, it does not appear to have been 
much advanced by his appearance at this crisis ; but the re- 
ception he personally met from many individuals among the 
higher classes of society and the leaders of fashion, when 
Americans and republicanism were the infatuating novelties 
of the day, must have been highly gratifying to his feelings 
and to his insatiable love of distinction. The American com- 
modore, the conqueror of the haughty English, insulted by the 
degrading offer of a letter-of-marque at Amsterdam, became 
the hero, and, what was nearly the same thing, the lion of 
the day in Paris. He was everywhere feasted and caressed ; 
and, as if to make ample amends for the gratuitous insult 
offered him by the ministers, he was presented by the king 
with a gold sword, bearing the following honourable inscrip- 



ORDER OF MERIT. 157 

tion : " VINDICATI MARIS LUDOVICUS XVI. REMUNERATOR STRENUO 

vindici." Leave was requested from Congress to invest hint 
with the military Order of Merit, — an honour which had 
never been conferred on any one before who hud not actually 
borne arms under the commission of France. An official 
letter was also addressed to him by his ancient tormentor, M. 
Sartine, expressive of the highest approbation of his conduct, 
and esteem for his personal character. This much. was to be 
gained by a man of talent and address appearing in his own 
cause at the Court of France ; nor is there any lack of charity 
in supposing that, had Jones remained quiet at L'Orient, the 
victor of the Serapis, and the generous and patriotic liberator 
of the American prisoners, would not have sunk beneath the 
load of court honours. The secret history of the manner in 
which services of plate, knighthoods, and letters of thanks, are 
sometimes obtained, would form a curious and not unedifying 
chapter in the story of many a professional man's life. In the 
present instance they were amply merited. They were as 
proudly received ; and did equal honour to the royal donor 
and the individual distinguished by his favour. Jones was 
exactly of the sanguine, ambitious, and loyal cast of charac- 
ter, which leads men to prize at their full value those coveted 
marks of princely approbation. The gold sword and the ac- 
companying Order were the pride and the boast of his future 
life. 

Testimonies of kindness and esteem, of a kind even more 
gratifying to his private feelings, were not wanting. Of this 
brilliant period he long afterwards says, in speaking of himself, 
" he received aj Paris, and other parts of the kingdom, the 
most flattering applause and public approbation wherever he 
appeared. Both the great and the learned sought his ac- 
quaintance in private life, and honoured him with particular 
marks of friendship. At court he was always received with 
a kindness which could only have arisen from a fixed esteem." 

While the French court were thus in the vein of caressing 
14 



!5S LEE'S INTRIGUE. 

and bestowing, Jones solicited and obtained the Ariel frigate 
to accompany the Alliance to America, with stores for Wash- 
ington's army. Nor in all probability was he averse to an 
increase of force, should fortune throw any English ships in 
his way on the homeward voyage. The Ariel he intended 
to man from the supernumeraries of the Alliance and the lately 
exchanged American prisoners. The affair of the prize-money 
was put in train, as far as fair promises and preliminary 
orders may go, and in high spirits Jones took leave of the 
French Court and capital, and returned to L'Orient, ready, 
as he conceived, to quit France, and furnished, by dint of his 
indefatigable genius, with an official letter from the Minister 
of Marine to Congress, enumerating his services in Europe, 
and recommending him to favour, and consequently to ad- 
vancement. 

While Jones was absent in Paris, his ship had been the 
scene of a mutinous intrigue, of which the wretched Landais, 
though apparently the promoter, was in reality at first only 
the tool. 

This intrigue originated with Mr. Arthur Lee, who had held 
a subordinate diplomatic appointment in France, and was now 
about to return to America. The real cause of this person's 
conduct at this time appears to have been dislike of Franklin, 
and a mean jealousy of the consideration in which this truly 
great man was held, both by friend and foe, in Europe as well 
as in America, while the vast merits of the patriotic Mr. Lee 
were overlooked. When the affair of Landais had been ori- 
ginally discussed, Lee, in the spirit of factious opposition, had 
gone openly against the opinion of Franklin and the other 
plenipotentiaries, and taken part with the mutinous, and, as it 
afterwards turned out, mad Frenchman, on what he was 
pleased to call constitutional grounds. Landais had originally 
received the command of the Alliance from Congress. When 
ordered to head-quarters to account for his conduct, he volun- 
tarily left his ship, and soon afterwards Jones was officially 



LANDAIS'S CONDUCT. 159 

ordered to quit the Serapis, and assume command of the 
Alliance, which, as has been seen, he did much against his 
inclination. Meanwhile Landais was ordered to return to 
America, that cognizance might be taken of his conduct before 
the proper tribunal. In this order he appeared to acquiesce ; 
and he was furnished with money by Franklin to bear his 
charges. On his arrival at L'Orient, it seems to have been 
adroitly insinuated into his naturally ricketty brains, that 
Franklin and the other plenipotentiaries had exceeded their 
powers in superseding him and ordering him to America ; and 
that Congress having bestowed his commission, to Congress 
alone was he bound to surrender it. The same doctrine was 
diligently promulgated among the seamen of the Alliance, 
and readily received by many of the officers. The delay of 
the prize-money, and the non-payment of the seamen's arrears, 
gave a strong handle to the discontented and designing. It 
was artfully represented to the disaffected crew, that while 
Jones, their new commander, basked in the sunshine of Court 
favour at Versailles, he either neglected or compromised their 
rights and interests, and hesitated to demand justice for his 
men from those who heaped favours on himself, and loaded 
him alone with benefits and honours, while those who had 
shared his toils and achieved the glory he claimed were ne- 
glected and forgotton. There was some colour for complaint. 
Jones felt his error, and, in writing to a friend about the dis- 
content of his crew, says, " I have been to blame for having 
returned from Paris without having absolutely insisted on the 
previous payment of my men." These men he had found on 
his return sullen, alienated, and almost in open mutiny. 

Landais had now determined, to assume by force the com- 
mand of the Alliance, unjustly, as he said, wrested from him ; 
nnd the officers and men prepared a memorial, addressed to 
the plenipotentiaries, setting forth their grievances and their 
wishes. Landais, to do, the business with becoming mndostv 



160 FRANKLIN'S MODERATION. 

arid propriety, expressed a desire to be formally reinstated* 
in his command. 

Franklin, whose feelings, whether as a public or private 
man, must have been grossly outraged by this proceeding, 
stifled his indignation, and, by every argument likely to con- 
vince their reason, or influence their passions, endeavoured to 
recall these misled men to a sense of their duty. 

No minister ever took half the pains to conciliate a set of 
wrongheaded malcontents, whom the power of France could 
have enabled him to crush at once. Some of the arguments 
he addressed to their professional feelings and pride are ex- 
ceedingly subtle. The officers and crew of the Alliance 
were naturally indignant at the charge of having fired into 
the Bon Homme Richard, during the engagement with the 
Serapis. In relation to this affair, Franklin states, " though I 
declined any judgment of his (Landais's) manoeuvres in the 

* Franklin's letter in reply to the modest demand of this Frenchman is as 
indicative of his strong good sense and clear-sighted integrity as anything 
that ever issued from his pen. Of this sagacious person one might almost 
think it was because " honesty was the best policy" that he loved it. He ad- 
mired truth' for its utility more than its native beauty ; and employed it ac- 
cordingly with singular success in his dealings with men, where others more 
short-sighted, if not less sincere, would have used subterfuge, and trick only 
to counteract their own purposes. It is thus he wrote Landais :-"No one ever 
learned the opinion I formed of you from inquiry made into your conduct. 
I kept it entirely to myself. I have not even hinted it in my letters to America, 
because I would not hazard giving to any one a bias to your prejudice. By 
communicating a part of that opinion privately to you I can do no harm, for 
you may burn it. I should not give you the pain of reading it, if your 
demand did not make it necessary. I think you then so imprudent, so 
litigious, and quarrelsome a man, even with your best friends, that peace and 
good order, and consequently the quiet and regular subordination so necessary 
to success, are, where you preside, impossible. These are within my obser- 
vation and apprehension. Your military operations I leave to more capa- 
ble judges. If, therefore, I had twenty ships of war in my disposition, I 
should not give one of them to Captain Landais. The same temper which 
excluded him from the French marine would weigh equally with me ; of 
course I shaR not replace him in the Alliance," 



FRANKLIN'S LETTER. 161 

fight, I have given it as my opinion, (to Congress,) after ex- 
amining the affair, that it was not at all likely, either that he 
should have given orders to fire into the Bon Homme Richard, 
or that his officers would have obeyed such an order had it 
been given them. Thus I have taken what care I could of 
your honour in that particular. You will therefore excuse 
me if I am a little concerned for it in another. If it should 
come to be publicly known that you had the strongest aver- 
sion to Captain Landais, who had used you basely, and that it 
is only since the last year's cruise, and the appointment of 
Commodore Jones to the command, that you request to be 
again under your old captain, I fear suspicions and reflections 
may be thrown upon you by the world, as if this change of 
sentiment may have arisen from your observation during 
the cruise, that Captain Jones loved close fighting, that Cap- 
tain Landais was skilful in keeping out of harm's way, and 
that you therefore thought yourself safer with the latter. 
For myself, I believe you to be brave men, and lovers of 
your country and its glorious cause; and I am persuaded 
you have only been ill-advised, and misled by the artful and 
malicious misrepresentations of some persons, I guess at. 
Take in good part this friendly counsel from an old man who 
is your friend. Go home peaceably with your ship. Do 
your duty faithfully and cheerfully. Behave respectfully to 
your commander, and I am persuaded he will do the same to 
you. Thus you will not only be happier in your voyage, but 
recommend yourselves to the future favours of Congress and 
of your country." 

Such was the conciliatory tone in which Franklin ad- 
dressed these turbulent and discontented men. It were to be 
vv'shed that his good temper and calmness of reason had 
produced the effect that might have been expected. The 
failure proves that something besides reason is at times neces- 
sary in governing seamen. 

In a letter to Jones he explains the affair, and relates the 
14* 



162 MUTINY. 

measures he had taken in consequence. " Saturday morn- 
ing," he says, " I received a letter signed by about 115 of the 
sailors of the Alliance, declaring that they would riot raise 
the anchor, nor depart from L'Orient, till they had six months' 
wages paid them, and the utmost farthing of their prize- 
money, including the ships sent into Norway, and until their 
legal captain, P. Landais, was restored to them. This mutiny 
has undoubtedly been excited by that captain ; probably by 
making them believe that satisfaction has been received for 
those Norway prizes delivered up to the English," &c, &c. 
" That he is concerned in this mutiny he has been foolish 
enough to furnish us with proofs, the sailors' letter being not 
only enclosed under a cover directed to me in his hand-wri- 
ting, but he also, in the same writing, interlined the words, 
their legal captain, P. Landais, which happens to contain his 
signature. I immediately went to Versailles, to demand the 
assistance of government, and on showing the letter, by which 
his guilt plainly appeared, an order was immediately granted, 
sent away the same evening, for apprehending and imprison- 
ing him, and orders were (promised to be) given at the same 
time to the commissary of the port to afford you all kind of 
assistance to facilitate your departure." The promises thus 
given were very ill kept. The mutiny had now reached the 
crisis. On the morning of the 13th June, before going on 
shore to superintend the equipment of the Ariel, Jones caused 
his appointment to the Alliance to be read on the deck of 
that ship, and, addressing the assembled crew, demanded that 
whoever had any complaint to prefer against him should now 
speak out. " There was," he says, " every appearance of 
contentment and subordination ;" and again, " I am certain 
tne people love me and would readily obey me." The proofs 
of this affection were of a very unusual kind. No sooner 
had Jones quitted the ship, than* Landais came on board and 
usurped the command. 

As soon as infelligence of this wild measure reached 



JONES'S PERPLEXITIES. 163 

Franklin, Landais was ordered to quit the ship, and the offi 
cers were commanded to obey Jones alone. To Jones, who 
was in the greatest perplexity, he wrote, "You are likely to 
have great trouble. I wish you well through it. You have 
shown your abilities in fighting, — you have now an opportu- 
nity of showing the other necessary part, in the character of 
a great chief, — your abilities in policy." 

Landais, backed and instigated by Lee, and supported by 
the officers and seamen, refused to yield one jot ; and, hold- 
ing the mandate of Franklin and the arrest of the King alike 
in defiance, he resolved to sail for America, captain of the 
Alliance. In this singular juncture, Jones posted back to 
Versailles, to solicit the assistance of government. Orders, 
he was told, had been previously sent to L'Orient to compel 
Landais and his crew to obedience, or, if he attempted to quit 
the port, to fire on him, and, if necessary, sink the ship. 
Confiding in this statement, Jones immediately returned to 
L'Orient, and found that the orders which were said to have 
preceded him, if they had ever been despatched, had at least 
never arrived, — a circumstance somewhat singular, though, 
in French diplomacy, by no means unaccountable. The 
local authorities, however, with whom Jones, in the course 
of his long stay in that port, had acquired considerable influ- 
ence, were strongly disposed to support his authority and to 
enforce the orders of Franklin. Acting under the sanction of 
the American ministers, and supported by the local authori- 
ties at L'Orient, as well as by the promises, and countenance 
of the government, had Jones at this time listened to the 
dictates of passion or revenge, irreparable mischief might 
have been done, which his magnanimity and prudence 
averted. 

Basely as he had been used, and irritated as he must have 
been, he would not be even the indirect cause of shedding 
American blood. It is thus he notices the part he had taken, 
and relates the consequences of the mutiny to Franklin : 



164 ACCOUNT OF THE MUTINY. 

" L'Orient, June 21, 1780. 
" Sir, 

" I was detained at Versailles forty hours from the time of 
my arrival, and was then informed by M. de Genet, that an 
express had been sent from Court with the necessary orders 
to the King's officers at L'Orient, respecting Captain Landais 
and the Alliance. I found myself here early yesterday 
morning, fifty-four hours after leaving Versailles. The Alli- 
ance had, the evening and night before, been warped and 
towed from the road of L'Orient to Port Louis; and no 
express from Court had arrived here. M. de Thevenard, 
the commandant, however, made every necessary prepara- 
tion to stop the Alliance, as appears by the enclosed docu- 
ment on the subject. He had even sent orders in the evening, 
before I was aware, to fire on the Alliance, and sink her to 
the bottom, if they attempted to approach and pass the bar- 
rier that had been made across the entrance of the port. 
Had I even remained silent an hour longer, the dreadful 
work would have been done. Your humanity will, I know, 
justify the part I acted in preventing a scene that would 
have rendered me miserable for the rest of my life. The 
Alliance has this morning been towed and warped through 
the rocks, and is now at anchor without, between Port Louis 
and Groix. In this situation I at noon sent out Lieutenant 
Dale with a letter to Captain Landais, whereof the within is 
a copy. * 

" Yesterday morning the within letter was brought me 
from Mr. Lee, though I had never even hinted that his 
opinion or advice would be acceptable. He has, however, 
pulled off the mask, and, I am convinced, is not a little disap- 
pointed that his operations have produced no bloodshed 
between the subjects of France and America. Poor man ! 

"Yesterday everything that persuasion or th) eatening could 
effect was attempted * * * 



LETTER TO A LADY. 165 

"M. de Thevenard, on his part, sent the deputy of M. 
Sweighauser on board with your letters, under his own cover 
to Captain Landais, and to the officers and men of the Alliance. 
The one was delivered to Captain Landais, the other to Lieu- 
tenant Digges. M. de Thevenard also sent on board an officer 
with the King's order to arrest Captain Landais, who refused 
to surrender himself. Mr. Lee and his party pretend to justify 
their measures, because they say you did not put Captain 
Landais under arrest. According to them, you cannot dis- 
place him, however great his crimes ! If the government does 
not interfere to crush this despicable party, France and 
America have much to fear from it. I verily believe them to 
be English, at the bottom of their hearts."* 

To a lady in Paris, one of the friends he had lately made, 
he sent a much fuller account of this unpleasant affair, wishing 
no doubt, to stand clear in the opinion of his powerful and 
fashionable patrons in the capital, and reasonably concluding 
that his exculpatory epistle might make the round of the cir- 
cles. " I confess to you," he writes to Madame Tellison, 
" that I feel rather ashamed that such an event should have 
happened, although, God knows, it was not owing to any fault 
of mine. The true reason was, that M. Ray de Chaumont 
unjustly detained from the brave Americans, who had so 
bravely served in the squadron under my command, not 
only their wages, but also their prize-money ; and he has 
not, even to this hour, given me the means of paying them 
their just claims. One or two envious persons here, taking 
advantage of these circumstances, persuaded these poor people 
that I had joined M. Ray de Chaumont to detain from them 
their just dues, and that it was, besides, my intention to carry 
them on new expeditions in Europe, and not to suffer them to 
return to their families in America during the war. These 
insinuations were false and groundless ; 1 had disapproved 

* In a marginal note, affixed to this letter many years afterwards, Jones says, 
«* In this opinion I was not singular, though perhaps I was mistaken." 



166 THE SERAPIS REFITTED. 

the conduct of M. Ray de Chaumont so much as neither to 
speak or write to him after my return to France. My sole 
business at Court was to obtain the free sale of the prizes, 
which I effected ; and, far from being then bound on new ex- 
peditions in Europe, I was ordered by the board of admiralty 
in America to return forthwith to Congress, and had in conse- 
quence received the public despatches both from Dr. Franklin 
and the Court. The Alliance, however, was hurried out of 
this port before the crew had time for reflection ; yet, before 
they sailed from the road of Groix, many of them, seeing their 
error, refused to weigh anchor, and were carried to sea con- 
fined hands and feet in irons. The government of France 
had taken measures to stop the ship ; but I interposed, to pre- 
vent bloodshed between the subjects of the two allied nations. 
I am now again almost ready to sail in the Ariel, and I know, 
soon after my arrival in America, that Congress will do me 
impartial justice. I will then have the happiness to furnish 
you with the account I promised, and the circumstances will 
be supported by the fullest evidence. I dare promise that it 
will then appear that I have only been to blame for having 
returned here from Paris without having insisted absolutely on 
the previous payment of my men." 

Franklin could at this time do no more to support the au- 
thority of the officer he had appointed. His anxious thoughts 
were in America, occupied with the distressed condition of 
Washington's troops. His first object, therefore, was to 
remedy as far as possible the mischief done to the public cause 
by Landais's mutiny, and the consequent delay in forwarding 
the military stores. Jones, however, appears to have felt his 
own crippled command at least as pressingly as the exigencies 
of the distant troops, and attempted to obtain a larger vessel 
than the Ariel. 

The Serapis was now refitted. From the hour of her cap- 
ture his pride and his affections had been fixed on this com- 
mand, and he very plausibly enumerated to Franklin the 
advantages that might result to the public cause, were he 



FRANRLIN'S POSITION. 167 

enabled, with this vessel armed for war, the Ariel, and certain 
American frigates, to undertake some of those daring expe- 
ditions he had so often* proposed to government. This pro- 
ject failed, and he begged for the Terpsichore, another French 
ship, and engaged his personal friends to lend their influence 
to obtain it for him. Their solicitations did not succeed. 
France was now in the heat of the war, — the ministry were 
occupied with other subjects, and also evidently a little tired 
of the importunity of the Chevalier Jones, — and Franklin was 
disappointed and vexed at the delays which had taken place 
in forwarding those stores it had cost him so much to obtain, 
and of which the army stood in such pressing want. No 
sooner, however, had the Alliance left port, than, without 
wasting another thought on the affair, which no thought could 
amend, Franklin writes with the most business-like prompti- 
tude, " That affair is over, and the business is now to get the 
goods out as well as we can. I am perfectly bewildered with 
the different schemes that have been proposed to me for this 
purpose by Mr. Williams, Mr. Ross, yourself, and M. de 
Chaumont. Mr. Williams was for purchasing ships. I told 
him I had not the money, but he still urges it. You and Mr. 
Ross proposed borrowing the Ariel. I joined in the applica- 
tion for that ship. We obtained her. She was to convey 
all that the Alliance could not take. Now you find her in- 
sufficient. An additional ship has already been asked, and 
could not be obtained. I think therefore it will be best that 
you take as much into the Ariel as you can and depart with 
it. For the rest I must apply to the government to contrive 
some means of transporting it in their own ships. This is my 
present opinion ; and when I have once got rid of this business, 
no consideration shall tempt me to meddle again with such 
matters, as I never understood them.'" 

Before Jones could get off on this errand, so necessary to 
America, but not much calculated, as he felt, to increase his 
glory, and therefore, on his part, not very zealously managed, 



168 SILAS DEANE. 

a change took place in the French Ministry which revived 
his hopes. The Marquis de Castries succeeded Sartine at the 
head of the marine department, and the virtuous Maurepas 
became prime minister. To both of these distinguished 
persons Jones lost no time in recommending himself by con- 
gratulatory letters ; along with which were transmitted fresh 
copies of the maritime projects formerly sent to their prede- 
cessors in office. He also wished, before leaving Europe, 
to obtain from them, as the persons in actual power, testimo- 
nies in his favour, addressed to Congress, equivalent to those 
he had obtained from Sartine. His philanthropy, patriotism, 
and disinterested services, were once more duly set forth to 
the new ministers. He endeavoured to bring Mr. Silas Deane 
and Dr. Bancroft into his views, and again employed the in- 
fluence of his friend the Duke of Rochefoucault. The ship so 
earnestly solicited was not obtained, nor does it appear that 
the American ministers concurred in the request. 

Though on an after investigation Jones came clear out of 
this affair, it is obvious that, had he been half as anxious to 
forward the military stores as to serve the republic in a way 
more consonant to his own taste, the Ariel might long before 
this period have reached the shores of America. 

Towards the end of June the Alliance had put to sea, and 
Jones still remained in port, when in November accounts 
were received of the arrival of that ship at Boston. From 
his friend Dr. Cooper of that town Dr. Franklin received an 
account of the issue of Lee's factious proceedings, and of 
Landais's mutiny, which he instantly transmitted to the person 
most likely to sympathize with his feelings regarding that 
mortifying affair. The extract of Dr. Cooper's letter wns 
enclosed to the commodore in a letter from Mr. Temple 
Franklin, the grandson and secretary of Franklin, the minister 
himself being at this time confined to bed : 



LAN DAIS IN BOSTON 



160 




Silas Deane. 



" Boston, September 8th, 1780. 
" The Alliance arrived here some weeks ago, with Dr. Lee, 
who is still in town. This vessel appears to me to have left 
France in an unjustifiable manner, though I cannot yet obtain 
the particular circumstances. Landais did not hold his com- 
mand through the voyage, which was either relinquished by 
him or wrested from him. All the passengers, as well as 
IS 



170 THE ARIEL SAILS. 

officers and sailors, are highly incensed against him, and Di 
Lee as much as any one. A court of inquiry is now sitting 
upon this matter, in which the Doctor has given a full 
evidence against the captain, which represents him as 
insane." 

It was unfortunate that Dr. Lee was so late in making this 
discovery. 

The tardy and inauspicious voyage of the Ariel, so long 
delayed and so often obstructed, was at length commenced 
on the 8th of October. On the following night the ship en- 




The Ariel riding out the storm. 



countered a tremendous gale, which was felt over almost all 
Europe. She rode out the storm for two days dismasted, 
and the waters around her covered with the wrecks of other 
vessels ; and on the 13th put back, in a very disabled condi- 
tion to L'Orient. The arms, the most important part of the 
stores, were so much damaged, that it was necessary they 



JONES TAKES LEAVE. 171 

should be unshipped and left ; and before the vessel could be 
repaired and freshly provisioned, it was the middle of Decem- 
ber. Franklin, though too reasonable to complain of a delay 
occasioned by the violence of the elements, grudged, never 
theless, the expense to which he had been repeatedly put for 
new out-fits, — grudged, but passed the bills drawn on him ? 
giving, however, his less considerate friend sundry precau- 
tionary hints. 

" I suppose," he writes, " you thought it for the good of the 
service, as you say you did, to order that great quantity of 
medicine for the seventy-four-gun ship, yet, after what I had 
written to you of my difficulties, it still seems to me that you 
ought not to have done it without informing me and obtain- 
ing my consent; and I have only to be thankful that you did 
not order all her stores, sails, and rigging, anchors, powder, 
&c. I think you must be sensible, on reflection, that with 
regard to me it was wrong, and that it ought not to be expect- 
ed from me to be always ready and able to pay the demands 
that every officer in the service may saddle me with. This 
affair, however, is done with, and I shall say and think no 
more about it." 

Jones gave such an explanation as was at least meant to 
satisfy the frugal statesman; to whom, on the 18th Decern 
ber, he once again addressed a farewell letter. He also took 
leave once more of his friends and patrons in the capital 
One of his valedictory epistles, addressed to Madame D'Or 
moy, may be received as the best exposition that can be given 
of his feelings at the close of his short but brilliant career in 
Europe : — " I cannot leave France without expressing how 
much I feel myself honoured and obliged by the generous 
attention that you have shown to my reputation in your jour- 
nal. I will ever have the most ardent desire to merit the 
spontaneous praise of beauty and her pen ; and it is impos- 
sible to be more grateful than I am for the very polite atten- 
tions I lately received at Paris and Versailles. My particular 



172 LETTER TO MADAME D'ORMOY. 

thanks are due to you, madame, for the personal proofs I had 
received of your esteem and friendship, and for the happiness 
you procured 'me in the society of the charming countess, and 
other ladies and gentlemen of your circle. But I have a 
favour to ask of you, madame, which I hope you will grant 
me. You tell me in your letter, that the inkstand I had the 
honour to present you, as a small token of my esteem, shall 
be reserved for the purpose of writing what concerns me; 
now I wish you to see my idea in a more expanded light, and 
would have you make use of that inkstand to instruct man- 
kind, and support the dignity and rights of human nature." 

" By the enclosed declaration of my officers," he writes to 
the same lady, " you will see, my dear madam, that I was in 
a ticklish situation in the moment while you were employed 
in WTiting to me on the 9th ultimo. It is impossible to be 
more sensible than I am of the obligation conferred on me 
by your attentions and kind remembrance, joined to that of 
the belle comtesse, your fair daughters, and the amiable ladies 
and gentlemen of your society. I have returned without 
laurels, and, what is worse, without having been able to 
render service to the glorious cause of liberty. I know not 
why Neptune was in such anger, unless he thought it an 
affront in me to appear on his ocean with so insignificant a 
force. It is certain, that till the night of the 8th, I did not 
fully conceive the awful majesty of tempest and of shipwreck. 
I can give you no just idea of the tremendous scene that na- 
ture then presented, which surpassed the reach even of poetic 
fancy and the pencil. I believe no ship was ever before 
saved from an equal danger off the point of the Penmark 
'•ocks. I am extremely sorry that the young English lady you 
mention should have imbibed the national hatred against me. 
I have had proofs that many of the first and fines* ladies of 
that nation are my friends. Indeed I cannot imagine why any 
fair lady should be my enemy, since, upon the large scale of 
universal philanthropy, I feel, acknowledge, and bend before 



DELIA. 173 

the sovereign power of beauty. The English nation may 
hate me, but Iivillforce them to esteem me too." 

Jones had other, or at least one other fair correspondent 
about this period, who, under the assumed name of Delia, 
makes some figure in his private history. The day of the 
Amintas and Delias was not then quite gone by ; and, under 
this pastoral and poetic appellation, a lady chose to conceal 
herself, of whose real name and situation the multitudinous 
papers left by the commodore, though they include many of 
her letters, afford no satisfactory trace. In America, Delia 
has been discovered to be a young lady of the court. In 
Scotland we are not so quick-sighted. 

But as the claims of love and gallantry were ever post- 
poned by the commodore to those of professional duty and 
ambition, we shall in so far follow his example as to defer the 
introduction of Delia and her fair contemporaries, till a more 
convenient season. 

Besides the enthusiastic epistles of Delia, Jones carried out 
the following letter, already noticed as written by De Sartine 
on the order of the King of France, and approved by his 
Most Christian Majesty in council. This of itself would have 
ensured him that honourable reception in the country of his 
adoption, to which his zeal and services gave him yet stronger 
claims. 

Translation of the Letter addressed to Mr. Hantenydon, President of the Con- 
gress of the United States, by M. de Sartine, of the French Marine. 

" Versailles, 29th May, 1780. 
" Commodore Paul Jones, after having given to all Europe, 
and, above all, to the enemies of France and of the United 
States, high proofs of his valour and of his talents, is about 
to return to America, to give an account to Congress of tne 
success of his military operations. I am aware, sir, that the 
reputation he has so justly acquired will go before him, and 
.hat the history of his campaigns will be sufficient to prove 
15* 



174 DE SARTINE'S LETTER. 

to his countrymen, that his abilities are equal to his courage ; 
but the king has thought it right to join to the public voice 
his approbation and his bounty. He has charged me ex- 
pressly to make known to you how much he is satisfied with 
the services of the commodore, persuaded that Congress will 
lo him like justice. His Majesty gives him a pledge of his 
steem in bestowing on him the gift of a sword, which could 
not be placed in better hands, and now offers to Congress to 
decorate this brave officer with the cross of the order of 
Military Merit. His Majesty thinks that these peculiar dis- 
tinctions, associating together in the same honours the subject 
of two countries united by similar interests, may be regarded 
as another tie between them, and excite them to emulation in 
the common cause. If, after having approved the conduct 
of the commodore, it is judged fit to intrust him with any 
new expedition to Europe, his Majesty will see him return 
with pleasure ; and he presumes Congress will refuse nothing 
that may be deemed necessary to promote the success of his 
enterprises. My personal esteem for the commodore induces 
me to recommend him in a particular manner to you, sir ; 
and I venture to hope that, in the reception which he may 
receive from Congress, he will perceive the fruits of the senti- 
ments with which he has inspired me. 

" I have the honour to be, &c. 

" De Sartine." 




PREPARATIONS FOR ACTION. 175 




CHAPTER VIII. 

N the 18th February, 1781, 
Commodore Jones reached Phi- 
ladelphia. The principal ad- 
venture of this voyage is thus 
related by himself in the me- 
morial to the king of France, 
and in the third person: — 
" After a variety of rencoun- 
ters, he, in the latitude 26° north 
and longitude of Barbadoes, met with a remarkably fast-sail- 
ing frigate belonging to the enemy's navy. Captain Jones 
endeavoured to avoid speaking with that ship, and as the 
night approached, he hoped to succeed, notwithstanding her 
superior sailing. He was, however, mistaken, for next morn- 
ing the ships were at less distance asunder than they Had 
been the evening before, although during the night the officers 
of the watch had always informed Captain Jones the sail con- 
tinued out of sight. An action now became unavoidable, and 
the Ariel was prepared for it. Everything was thrown over- 
board that interfered with the defence and safety of the ship. 
Captain Jones took particular care, by the management of 
sails and helm, to prevent the enemy from discovering the 
force of the Ariel, and worked her so well as not to discover 
any warlike appearance or preparation. In the afternoon 
the Ariel fired now and then a light stern-chaser at the enemy 
*rom the quarter-deck, and continued to. crowd sail as if very 
much alarmed. This had the desired effect, and the enemy 
pursued with the greater eagerness. Captain Jones did not 



176 SINGULAR CONVERSATION. 

suffer the enemy to come close up till the approach of night, 
when, having well examined his force, he shortened sail, to 
meet his approach. When the two ships came within hail 
of each other they both hoisted English colours. The person 
whose duty it was to hoist the pendant on board the Ariel 
had not taken care to make the other end of the halliards fast, 
to haul it down again to change the colours. This prevented 
Captain Jones from an advantageous manoeuvre he had in- 
tended, and obliged him to let the enemy range up along the 
lee-side of the Ariel, where he saw a battery lighted for action. 
A conversation now took place between the two ships, which 
lasted near an hour; by which Captain Jones learned the 
situation of the enemy's affairs in America. The captain of 
the enemy's ship said his name was John Pindar. His ship 
had been constructed by the famous Mr. Peck of Boston, built 
at Newbury Port, owned by Mr. Tracey of that place, com- 
manded by Captain Hopkins, the son of the late Commodore 
Hopkins, and had been taken and fitted out at New York, 
and named the Triumph, by Admiral Rodney. Captain Jones 
told him he must put out his boat, and come on board and 
show his commission, to prove whether or not he really did 
belong to the British navy. To this he made some excuses, 
because Captain Jones had not told him who he was ; and 
his boat, he said, was very leaky. Captain Jones told him to 
consider the danger of refusing. Captain Pindar said he 
would answer for twenty guns, and that himself and every 
one of his people had shown themselves Englishmen. Captain 
Jones said he would allow him five minutes only to make his 
reflection. That time being elapsed, Captain Jones backed a 
little on the weather-quarter of the enemy, ran close under 
her stern, hoisted American colours, and being within short 
pistol-shot on the lee-beam of the enemy, began to engage. 
It was past seven o'clock, and as no equal force ever exceeded 
tne vigorous and regular fire of the Ariel's battery and tops, 
the action while it lasted made a glorious appearance. The 



ESCAPE OF THE PRIZE. 177 





enemy made a feeble resistance for about ten minutes. He 
then struck his colours. The enemy then begged for quarter, 
and said half of his men were killed. The Ariel's fire ceased ; 
and the crew, as usual after a victory, gave cries of joy, to 
' show themselves Englishmen/ The enemy filled their sails, 
and got on the Ariel's weather-bow before the cries of joy 
had ended on board the Ariel. Captain Jones, suspecting the 
base design of the enemy, immediately set every sail he could 
to prevent her escape ; but the enemy had so much advantage 
in sailing, that the Ariel could not keep up, and they soon got 
out of gun-shot. The English captain may properly be called 
a knave, because, after he surrendered his ship, begged for, 
and obtained quarter, he basely ran away, contrary to the 
laws of naval war and the practice of civilized nations. A 
conspiracy was discovered among the English part of the 
Ariel's crew immediately after sailing from France. During 
the voyage every officer, and even the passengers, had been 
constantly armed, and kept a regular watch, besides a con- 
stant guard with fixed bayonets. After the action with the 
Triumph the plot was so far discovered, that Captain Jones 
confined twenty of the ringleaders in irons till his arrival 



178 JONES IN PHILADELPHIA. 

Captain Jones arrived at Philadelphia on the 18th February, 
1781, having been absent from America three years, three 
months, and eighteen clays." 

The clamour excited in America by the detention of the 
army stores, and the real evils which had by this means 
been occasioned to the public service, compelled Congress to 
institute an immediate inquiry into the cause of the delay. 
This in common fairness was the more necessary, as Lan- 
dais, who was arrested in coming to America with the Alli- 
ance, had now been tried, and for ever dismissed the service. 

A Board of Admiralty had been for some time organized, 
and on this Board devolved the duty of inquiry, while Con- 
gress almost simultaneously took up the affair. A string of 
questions, forty-seven in number, were proposed by the 
Board to Jones, to which he was required to give answers in 
writing. He lost no time in Qpmplying with this order; nor, 
it is to be presumed, in securing such powerful and useful 
friends as his brilliant reputation and the testimonials he 
brought from Europe had already predisposed in his favour. 
Admired and caressed at the Court of Versailles, and more 
dreaded by the vulgar of the English nation than was very 
creditable either to their judgment or courage, Paul Jones 
could not, at this period of agitation and imbittered hostility, 
fail to find friends in America, had his public services been 
even less valuable and important than they really were. 

His answers to the official interrogataries were on all 
points ample, and, it appears, satisfactory; and the subsequent 
report of the Board, so far from being condemnatory, was 
highly flattering. Another report of the same Board will 
show the exact footing on which he now stood. 

" Admiralty Office, June 16th, 1781." 

" The Board, to whom was referred the letters and other 
papeis relative to the conduct of John Paul Jones, Esq., beg 
leave to report, that they have carefully perused said 'ettera 



REPORT OF THE ADMIRALTY. 179 

and papers, wherein they find favourable mention is made of 
his abilities as an officer by the Duke de Vauguyon, M. de 
Sartine and Dr. Franklin; and this is also corroborated by 
that valour and intrepidity with which he engaged his Bri- 
tannic Majesty's ship, the Serapis, of forty-four cannon, 
twelve and eighteen pounders, who, after a severe contest for 
for several hours, surrendered to his superior valour, thereby 
acquiring honour to himself and dignity to the American 
flag. 

" The Board therefore humbly conceive that an honourable 
testimony should be given to Captain Paul Jones, commander 
of the Bon Homme Richard, his officers and crew, for their 
many singular services in annoying the enemy on the British 
coasts, and particularly for their spirited behaviour in an 
engagement with his Britannic Majesty's ship of war, the 
Serapis, on the 23d of September, 1779, and obliging her to 
surrender to the American flag." 

The following is a farther extract from another of these 
reports : — 

" With regard to Captain Jones, the Board beg leave to 
report, that the views of the Marine Committee in sending 
Captain Jones, and his views in going in the Ranger to 
France, were, that he might take the command of the Indian, 
a ship that was building at Amsterdam on a new construc- 
tion, under a contract made by the Commissioners of these 
States at Paris, and with her, in concert with the Ranger, 
annoy the coasts and trade of Great Britain. When he 
arrived at Nantes, the Commissioners sent for him to Paris. 
After remaining there some time, he was informed that they 
had assigned their property in the ship Indian to the King of 
France. Captain Jones returned to Nantes, plans and under- 
takes a secret expedition in the Ranger," &c. &c. The 
report goes on to enumerate the various services of Captain 
Jones, and then proceeds, " ever since Captain Jones first 
became an officer in the navy of those States, he hath shown 



ISO SECOND REPORT. 

an unremitted attention in planning and executing enterprises 
calculated to promote the essential interests of our glorious 
cause. That in Europe, although in his expedition through 
the Irish Channel in the Ranger he did not fully accomplish 
his purpose, yet he made the enemy feel that it is in the 
power of a small squadron, under a brave and enterprising 
commander, to retaliate the conflagration of our defenceless 
towns. That returning from Europe, he brought with him 
the esteem of the greatest and best friends of America ; and 
hath received from the illustrious monarch of France that 
reward of warlike virtue which his subjects receive by a 
long series of faithful services or uncommon merit. 

" The Board are of opinion that the conduct of Paul Jones 
merits particular attention, and some distinguished mark of 
approbation from the United States in Congress assembled." 

Had the reports been drawn up by himself, or his most 
zealous friends, they could not have been more gratifying. 
He also received the solemn thanks of Congress, recorded in 
the following document : — 

"BY THE UNITED STATES IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED, 

" Saturday, April 14th, 1781. 

" On the report of a committee consisting of Mr. Varnun, 
Mr. Houston, and Mr. Mathews, to which w r as referred a mo- 
tion of Mr. Varnun : 

" The United States, in Congress assembled, having taken 
into consideration the report of the Board of Admiralty of 
the 28th March last, respecting the conduct of John Paul 
Tones, Esq., captain in the navy, do 

" Resolve, That the thanks of the United States in Con- 
gress assembled be given to Captain John Paul Jones, for the 
zeal, prudence, and intiepidity with which he hath supported 
the honour of the American flag, for his bold and successful 
enterprises to redeem from captivity the citizens of these 
States who had fallen under the power of the enemy, and in 



LETTER OF WASHINGTON. 181 

general for the good conduct and eminent services by which 
he has added a lustre to his character and to the American 
arms. 

" That the thanks of the United States in Congress assem- 
bled be also given* to the officers and men who have faithfully 
served under him from time to time, for their steady affection 
to the cause of their country, and the bravery and perseve- 
rance they have manifested therein." 

The following letter from Washington, of which the 
original is preserved among his papers, must have completed 
the satisfaction Paul Jones experienced in his honourable 
public acquittal : — 

" Head Quarters, New Windsor, 15th May, 1781. 
" Sir, 

" My partial acquaintance with either our naval or com- 
mercial affairs makes it altogether impossible for me to ac- 
count for the unfortunate delay of those articles of military 
stores and clothing which have been so long provided in 
France. 

" Had I had any particu ar reasons to have suspected you 
of being accessary to that delay, which I assure you has not 
been the case, my suspicions would have been removed by 
the very full and satisfactory answers which you have, to the 
best of my knowledge, made to the questions proposed to you 
by the Board of Admiralty, and upon which that Board have, 
in their report to Congress, testified the high sense which they 
entertain of your merits and services. 

" Whether our naval affairs have in general been well or 
ill conducted would be presumptuous in me to determine. 
Instances of bravery and good conduct in several of our 
officers have not, however, been wanting. Delicacy forbids 
me to mention that particular one which has attracted the 
admiration of all the world, and which has influenced the 
most illustrious monarch, to confer a mark of his favour which 
16 



182 ARTHUR LEE. 

can only be obtained by a long and honourable service, or by 
the performance of some brilliant action. 

" That you may long enjoy the reputation you have so 
justly acquired is the sincere wish of, 

Sir, 
Your most obedient servant, 

Geo. Washington." 

In the investigation respecting the delay of the stores, 
Franklin had been implicated as well as Jones. He now 
stood equally clear ; and, however reluctant Jones might have 
been, after Landais had usurped his command, and run away 
with his ship, to put to sea with a single vessel, and that of in- 
ferior force, the paramount and unceasing anxiety of Frank- 
lin to forward the stores, does not by any means admit a 
doubt. In the awkward affair of Landais it was accordingly 
decided that Franklin had done nothing for which he had not 
ample discretionary powers ; and as an appropriate mark of 
the entire confidence of Congress, he was appointed by the 
Marine Committee to the sole management of maritime 
affairs in Europe. The patron of Landais, the strenuous sup- 
porter of constitutional rights, Mr. Arthur Lee, now thought 
proper to abandon his former opinions, together with his un- 
lucky protege, and even to appear among the active friends 
of Commodore Jones. 

On coming thus clearly and honourably out of this investi 
gation, Jones, besides the vote of thanks so gratifying to his 
feelings, obtained the reward which of all others he valued 
the highest, a farther opportunity of extending his fame by 
active service in the cause of America. By an unanimous 
ballot, (for in this manner it seems officers were chosen,) he 
was appointed to the command of the America, a fine vessel, 
still on the stocks. Almost immediately he went to Ports- 
mouth, in New Hampshire, to superintend the building and 
equipment of this ship. 



JONES AT PORTSMOUTH. 183 

This seems to have been one of the few intervals of leisure 
and tranquillity which his chequered life afforded. It was 
sweetened by the hope of future services to be performed, and 
future glories to be acquired. He continued for some months 
in the little town of Portsmouth, and, besides maintaining an 
extensive correspondence in France and America, found time 
to mature and arrange his ideas on the subject of the Ameri- 
can navy. 

We have not sufficient nautical skill to decide how far the 
belief of Jones in the relative superiority of the French to the 
English system of naval tactics was even theoretically cor- 
rect ; it is enough, that almost every succeeding naval 
engagement has practically demonstrated the futility of his 
speculations. The ships of England scarcely ever afterwards 
met those of her rival save to beat them, till the flag of 
France was literally swept from the seas. But though the 
opinions of Jones are thus, in all probability, abstractly of no 
great value as those of a great naval tactician, they are of 
some consequence, as they discover the state of his own 
mind, his strong prepossession for whatever was French, and 
his jealousy of English naval supremacy. It is but fair to let 
him state his reasons for his singular belief. 

" The beginning of our navy," he says, " as navies now 
rank, was so singularly small, that I am of opinion it has no 
precedent in history. Was it a proof of madness in the first 
corps of sea-officers to have, at so critical a period, launched 
out on the ocean with only two armed merchant ships, two 
armed brigantines, and one armed sloop, to make war 
against such a power as Great Britain 1 To be diffident is 
not always a proof of ignorance. I had sailed before this 
revolution in armed ships and frigates, yet, when I came to 
try my skill, I am not ashamed to own I did not find myself 
Derfect in 'the duties of a first lieutenant. If midnight study, 
and the instruction of the greatest and most learned sea- 
officers, can have given me advantages, I am not without 



184 NAVAL TACTICS. 

then). I confess, however, I have yet to learn ; it is the work 
of many years' study and experience to acquire the high 
degree of science necessary for a great sea-officer. Cruising 
after merchant ships, the service in which our frigates have 
generally been employed, affords, I may say, no part of the 
knowledge necessary for conducting fleets and their opera- 
tions. There is now, perhaps, as much difference between a 
battle between two ships, and an engagement between two 
fleets, as there is between a duel and a ranged battle between 
two armies. The English, who boast so much of their navy, 
never fought a ranged battle on the ocean before the war 
that is now ended. The battle off Ushant was, on their part 
like their former ones, irregular ; and Admiral Keppell could 
only justify himself by the example of Hawke in our remem- 
brance, and of Russel in the last century. From that moment, 
the English were forced to study and to imitate the French 
in their evolutions. They never gained any advantage when 
they had to do with equal force, and the unfortunate defeat 
of Count de Grasse was owing more to the unfavourable cir- 
cumstances of the wind coming ahead four points at the 
beginning of the battle, which put his fleet into the order of 
echiquier when it was too late to tack, and of calm and cur- 
rents afterwards, which brought on an entire disorder, than 
to the admiralship, or even the vast superiority of Rodney, 
who had forty sail of the line against thirty, and five three- 
deckers against one. By the account of some of the French 
officers, Rodney might as w y ell have been asleep, not having 
made a second signal during the battle, so that every captain 
did as he pleased. 

" The English are very deficient in signals as well as in 
naval tactic. This I know, having in my possession their 
present fighting and sailing instructions, which comprehend 
all their signals and evolutions. Lord Howe has, indeed, 
made some improvements by borrowing from the French 
Hut Kempenfelt, who seems to have been a more promising 



GRADES OF OFFICERS. 185 

officer, had made a still greater improvement by the same 
means. It was said of Kempenfelt, when he was drowned 
in the Royal George, England has lost her Du Pavillion. 
That great man, the Chevalier Du Pavillion, commanded the 
Triumphant, and was killed in the last battle of Count de 
Grasse. France lost in him one of her greatest naval tacti- 
cians, and a man who had, besides, the honour (in 1773) to 
invent the new system of naval signals, by which sixteen 
hundred orders, questions, answers, and informations, can, 
without confusion or misconstruction, and with the greatest 
celerity, be communicated through a great fleet. It was his 
fixed opinion that a smaller number of signals would be insuf- 
ficient. A captain of the line at this day must be a tactician. 
A captain of a cruising frigate may make shift without ever 
having heard of naval tactics. Until I arrived in France, 
and became acquainted with that great tactician Count 
D'Orvilliers, and his judicious assistant the Chevalier du Pa- 
villion, w T ho, each of them, honoured me with instructions 
respecting the science of governing the operations, &c. of a 
fleet, I confess I was not sensible how ignorant I had been 
before that time of naval tactics."* 

However defective the general views of the commodore 
might be as a great tactician, his ideas of the proper forma- 
tion and internal policy and regulation of a navy for the 
young republic of America discover a comprehensive mind, 
and a liberal and generous spirit. On these points he had to 
contend with no lurking prepossessions. His very prejudices 
were here all on the right side. 

" From the observations I have made," he says, " and 
what I have read, it is my opinion, that in a navy there ought 
to be at least as many grades below a captain of the line as 

* Jones forgets once writing- Franklin that this illustrious commander 
chose rather to permit several English frigates to escape him, t v an violate 
professional etiquette by breaking his line ! This was tactics with a ven . 
geance ! 

16* 



18b THE AMERICAN NAVY. 

there are below a colonel of a regiment. Even the navy of 
France is deficient in subaltern grades, and has paid dearly 
for that error in its constitution, joined to another of equal 
magnitude, which authorizes ensigns of the navy to take 
charge of watch on board ships of the line. One instance 
may be sufficient to show this. The Zele, in the night 
between the 11th and 12th of April, 1782, ran on board the 
Ville de Paris, which accident was the principal cause of the 
unfortunate battle that ensued next day between Count de 
Grasse and Admiral Rodney. That accident in all proba- 
bility would not have happened had the deck of the Zele been 
at the time commanded by a steady experienced lieutenant 
of the line instead of a young ensign. The charge of the 
deck of a ship of the line should, in my judgment, never be 
intrusted to an officer under twenty-five years of age. At 
that time of life he may be supposed to have served nine or 
ten years, — a term not more than sufficient to have furnished 
him with the necessary knowledge for so great a charge. It 
is easy to conceive that the minds of officers must become 
uneasy, when they are continued too long in any one grade, 
which must happen (if regard be paid to the good of the 
service) where there are no more subaltern grades than 
midshipman and lieutenant. Would it not be wiser to raise 
young men by smaller steps, and to increase the number 1 

" I have many things to offer respecting the formation of 
our navy. We are a young people, and need not be ashamed 
to ask advice from nations . older and more experienced in 
marine affairs than ourselves. This, I conceive, might be 
done in a manner that would be received as a compliment 
ny several, or perhaps all the marine powers of Europe, and 
at the same time would enable us to collect such helps as 
would be of vast use when we come to form a constitution 
for the creation and government of our marine, the establish- 
ment and police of our dock-yards, academies, hospitals. &c. 
&c, and the general police of our seamen throughout the 



THE AMERICAN NAVY. 187 

continent. These considerations induced me, on my return 
from the fleet of his excellency the Marquis de Vaudreuil, to 
propose to you to lay my ideas on the subject before Con- 
gress, and to propose sending a proper person to Europe in a 
handsome frigate, to display our flag in the ports of the dif- 
• ferent marine powers, to offer them the free use of our ports, 
and propose to them commercial advantages, &c, and then 
to ask permission to visit their marine arsenals, to be 
informed how they are furnished both with men, provision, 
materials, and warlike stores, — by what police and officers 
they are governed, how and from what resources the officers 
and men are paid, &c. — the line of conduct drawn between 
the officers of the fleet and the officers of the ports, &c. — 
also the armament and equipment of the different ships of 
war, with their dimensions, the number and qualities of their 
officers and men, by what police they are governed in port 
and at sea, how and from what resources they are fed, 
clothed, and paid, &c, and the general police of their sea- 
men, and academies, hospitals, &c. &c. If you still object to 
my project on account of the expense of sending a frigate 
to Europe, and keeping her there till the business can be 
effected, I think it may be done, though perhaps not with 
the same dignity, without a frigate. My plan for forming a 
proper corps of sea-officers is, by teaching them the naval 
tactics in a fleet of evolution. To lessen the expense as 
much as possible, I would compose that fleet of frigates 
instead of ships of the line ; on board of each I would have a 
little academy, where the officers should be taught the prin- 
ples of mathematics and mechanics, when off* duty. When 
in port, the young officers should be obliged to attend the 
academies established at each dock-yard, where they should 
be taught the principles of every art and science that is neces- 
sary to form the character of a great sea-officer. And every 
commission officer of the navy should have free access, and 
be entitled to receive instruction gratis at those academies 



188 NEW DISAPPOINTMENT. 

All this would be attended with no very great expense, and 
the public advantage resulting from it would be immense. I 
am sensible it cannot be immediately adopted, and that we 
must first look about for ways and means ; but the sooner it 
is adopted the better. We cannot, like the. ancients, build a 
fleet in a month, and we ought to take example from what 
has lately befallen Holland. In time of peace it is necessary 
to prepare, and be always prepared, for war by sea. I have 
had the honour to be presented with copies of the signals, 
tactics, and police, that have been adopted under the different 
admirals of France and Spain during the war, and have in 
my last campaign seen them put in practice. While I was 
at Brest, as well as while I was inspecting the building of the 
America, as I had furnished myself with good authors, \ 
applied much of my leisure time to the study of naval archi- 
tecture, and other matters that relate to the establishment and 
police of dock-yards, &c. I, however, feel myself bound to 
say again, I have yet much need to be instructed." 

The ship America, by his exertions, was now nearly com 
pleted, and Jones had once more the immediate prospect of 
active service ; but fortune had yet another reverse in store 
for him ; or more properly, at this time commenced that 
series of disappointments and chagrins which, whether in 
Europe or America, continued, with brief intermissions, to 
pursue him through his subsequent life, till they consigned 
him to a premature grave. It appears to have been the fate 
of Jones at different epochs of his life, by the energies and 
activity of his character, and the impetuosity of his temper, 
to have momentarily strained the instruments of his advance- 
ment so far beyond the proper pitch, that they violently 
recoiled, as if by the counteracting force caused by their 
over-tension, on the instant that his vigorous hand was 
removed. 

The Magnifique, a seventy-four gun ship, belonging to 
Fiance, had, by accident or mismanagement, been lost in the 



THE AMERICA. ' 189 

harbour of Boston. To make up this loss, and keep theii 
powerful ally in good humour, Congress did not scruple to strip 
Jones of the command so flatteringly bestowed, and this with- 
out giving him any equivalent appointment, or any future 
pledge. This w.as the second time he had been disappointed 
in a similar way : the America shared the fate of the Indian ; 
it was presented by Congress to the Chevalier de la Luzerne, 
for the service of his most Christian Majesty. Fifteen months 
after his appointment Jones received the following letter from 
the Minister of Marine : — 

Marink Office, 4th Sept. 1782. 
" Dear Sir, 

"The enclosed resolution will show you the destination of 
the ship America. Nothing could be more pleasing to me than 
this disposition, excepting so far as you are affected by it. I 
know you so well as to be convinced that it must give you 
great pain, and I sincerely sympathize with you. But although 
you will undergo much concern at being deprived of this op- 
portunity to reap laurels on your favourite field, yet your re- 
gard for France will in some measure alleviate it ; and to this 
your good sense will naturally add the delays which must 
have happened in fitting the ship for sea. I must entreat you 
to continue your inspection until she is launched, and to urge 
forward the buisness. When that is done, if you will come 
hither I will explain to you the' reasons which led to this mea- 
sure, and my views of employing you in the service of your 
country. You will on your route have an opportunity of con- 
fering with the general on the blow you mentioned to me in 
one of your letters." * * * * * 

Whatever might have been the feelings of Jones on this 
abrupt and painful communication, they were stifled by pru- 
dence and patriotism ; and the cheerfulness and magnanimity 
with .which he submitted to this stroke elicited the subjoined 
etter from Morris: — 



190 MR, MORRIS'S LETTER. 

11 Marine Office, 4th October, 1782. 
" Sir, 

" I have received your letter of the 22d of last month. The 
sentiments contained in it will always reflect the highest ho- 
nour upon your character. They have made so strong an im- 
pression upon my mind, that I immediately transmitted an 
extract of your letter to Congress. I doubt not but they will 
view it in the same manner that I have done." 

Jones, on the request of the minister, continued to superin- 
tend the equipment of the ship; but as honourable employment, 
whether in the sea or land service, was ever his favourite 
object, he now solicited the leave of Congress to go on board 
the French fleet, then cruising in the American seas, for im- 
provement in his profession. This was given in the most, 
gracious manner, in the subjoined resolution : — 

BY THE UNITED STATES IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED. 

"Wednesday, December 4th, 1782. 

" Resolved, That the agent of marine be informed that Con- 
gress, having a high sense of the merit and services of Captain 
John Paul Jones, and being disposed to favour the zeal mani- 
fested by him to acquire improvement in the line of his pro- 
fession, do grant the permission which he requests, and that 
the said agent be instructed to recommend him accordingly 
to the countenance of his Excellency the Marquis de Vau- 
dreuil." 

The languor of inactivity, and the disappointment which fol- 
lowed, were also somewhat soothed by the receipt, from time 
to time, of letters, of which the following from La Fayette 
and Adams may furnish a sample : — 

"Alliance, off Boston, December, 1781. 
" I have been honoured with your polite favour, my dear 
Paul Jones ; but before it reached me I already was on board 
the Alliance, and every minute expecting to put to sea. It 



JOHN ADAMS'S LETTER. 191 

would nave afforded me great satisfaction to pay my respects 
to the inhabitants of Portsmouth, and the State in which you 
are for the present. As to the pleasure to take you by the 
hand, my dear Paul Jones, you know my affectionate senti- 
ments, and my very great regard for you, so that I need not 
add anything on that subject. 

" Accept my best thanks for the kind expressions in your 
letter. His Lordship's downfall* is a great event, and the 
greater, as it was equally and amicably shared by the two 
allied nations. Your coming to the army I had the honour 
to command would have been considered as a very flattering 
compliment to me who love you and know your worth. I 
am impatient to hear you are ready to sail, and I am of 
opinion we ought to unile under you every continental ship 
we can muster, with such a body of well-appointed marines 
as might cut a good figure ashore ; and then give you plenty 
of provision, and carte blanche. 

" I am sorry I cannot see you. I also had many things to 
tell you; write me by good opportunities, but not often in 
ciphers, unless the matter is very important," &c. &c. 

" La Fayette." 

. ■ Hague, 12th August, 1 782. 
" Dear Sir, 

" I had yesterday the pleasure of receiving your favour 
of the 10th December last. *####* 
The command of the America could not have been more ju- 
diciously bestowed ; and it is with impatience I wish her at 
sea, where she will do honour to her name. Nothing gives 
me so much surprise, or so much regret, as the inattention of 
my countrymen to their navy. It is to us a bulwark as essen- 
tial as it is to Great Britain. It is less costly than armies, 
and more easily removed from one of the United States to 
the other. **#####* 

* Lord Cornwallis. 



192 



JOHN ADAMS'S LETTER. 




John Adams. 



" Every day shows that the Batavians have not wholly lost 
their ancient character. They are always timid and slow 
in adopting their political systems ; but always firm and able 
m support of them ; and always brave and active in war. 
They have hitherto been restrained by their chiefs ; but if 
the war continue, they will show that they are possessed of 
the spirit of liberty, and that they have lost none of their 
great qualities. 



JONES APPOINTED AGENT FOR PRIZES. 19.3 

" Rodney's victory has intoxicated Britain again to such a 
degree that I think there will be no peace for some time. 
Indeed, if I could see a prospect of having a half-dozen line- 
of-battle ships under the American flag, commanded by Com- 
modore Paul Jones, engaged with an equal British force, I 
apprehend the event would be so glorious for the United 
States, and lay so sure a foundation for their prosperity, that 
it would be a rich compensation for a continuance of the war. 
However, it does not depend upon us to finish it. There 
is but one way, and that is Burgoynizing Carlton in New 
York. * * ## # ###* 

" John Adams." 

Jones went on board the French fleet according to the 
permission granted by Congress ; but peace put a sudden end 
to his nautical studies in this school ; and a few complimentary 
letters are the sole trophies that remain of his bloodless cam- 
paign. These testimonies of his talents and conduct were 
addressed by the Marquis de Vaudreuil to Mr. Morris, the 
Minister of the American Marine, and to the Chevalier de 
la Luzerne, the French Ambassador to the United States. 

That impatience of inactivity, which appears to have been 
an inherent quality in the mind of Jones, and considerations 
of private interest and friendship, now induced him to solicit 
an appointment in Europe, as agent for prize-money, of which 
large sums were still due to himself, and to his officers and 
men, both in France and Denmark. Their claims had indeed 
never been settled, and the arrangement was no easy matter. 
Pursuant to a resolution of Congress, he was, on the 1st No- 
vember, 1783, formally appointed " agent for all prizes taken 
in Europe under his own command." On his arrival in Paris, 
his mission was sanctioned by Franklin, still minister plenipo- 
tentiary at Versailles, and he proceeded in the affair, which 
had baffled out other negotiators, with his characteristic 
vigour and perseverance. We are well warranted in pre 
17 



194 JOHN LED YARD. 

suming that Jones would infinitely rather have re-visited 
Europe at this time, commander of that gallant experimental 
frigate which he had so earnestly recommended Congress to 
equip, than in the comparatively tame character he now held. 
His embassy, for such he loved to consider it, proved tedious, 
and even vexatious. His old antagonist, M. de Chaumont, 
had become insolvent ; the French finances were already in 
great disorder, and disinclination existed in every department 
to an adjustment or liquidation of the claims of the captors. 
The opposition of Chaumont was peculiarly irritating to Jones, 
who lost no opportunity of reviling and exposing him in his 
frequent correspondence with the Marshal de Castris. 

While this affair was in progress, Jones renewed and ex- 
tended his former social connexions in Paris ; and for three 
years, at this time, supported a considerable figure in the 
fashionable society of that capital, both for the gratification 
of his personal feelings and the advancement of his mission. 
In this interval he also formed several projects of commercial 
speculations, on the scale suited to the enterprising character 
of his mind, and in concert with different individuals of capital 
and influence. One of these projects, of which a sketch still 
remains among his papers, was to establish a fur-trade be- 
tween the north-west coast of America and China, or Japan. 
The person fixed on to act as supercargo in this adventurous 
expedition was the celebrated John Ledyard, with whom it 
probably originated. It went so far, that Jones was on the 
point of purchasing a ship ; but failed, partly from the jealousy 
of the Spanish government, and partly from private causes. 
The Algerines, and the sufferings of their American cap- 
tives, were another object of his anxious attention, and one of 
which he never lost sight for the short remainder of his life, 
though he was not able to effect much in the behalf of this 
unfortunate portion of his countrymen. 

Another of Jones's amusements at this time was having his 
Dust taken, which was afterwards somewhat ostentatiously 



JONES RETURNS TO AMERICA. 195 

presented to a favoured few in America. He also handed 
round the journal of his short and brilliant campaign, and re- 
ceived in return the usual requital of letters of compliment, 
which, when proceeding from such characters as Malsherbes 
and D'Estaing, any man may be pardoned for overvaluing. 
A compliment was never thrown away on the commodore, 
and seldom forgotten. 

Tedious as the affair of the prize-money proved, an equita- 
ble and even liberal adjustment was obtained in France long 
before any prospect of a settlement of the claims on Den- 
mark, which power had shuffled for eight years with con- 
siderable dexterity, and continued to do so still. 

With his mission thus far accomplished, Jones, in the sum- 
mer of 1787, returned to America, giving the following 
reasons for not at this time proceeding to Copenhagen : — 

To His Excellency John Jay, Esq., Minister of Foreign Affairs. 

" New York, July 8th, 1787. 
" Sir, 

" The application I made for a compensation for our prizes 
through the Danish minister in London not having succeeded, 
it was determined between Mr. Jefferson and myself, that the 
proper method to obtain satisfaction was for me to go in per- 
son to the Court of Copenhagen. It was necessary for me 
to see the Baron de Bio me, before I could leave France on 
that business, and he being absent on a tour in Switzerland, 
did not return to Paris, till the beginning of last winter. I 
left Paris in the spring, and went as far as Brussels on my 
way to Copenhagen, when an unforeseen circumstance in my 
private affairs rendered it indispensable for me to turn about 
and cross the ocean. My private business here being already 
finished, I shall in a few days re-embark for Europe, in order 
to proceed to the court of Denmark. It is my intention to 
go by' the way of Paris, in order to obtain a letter to the 
French minister at Copenhagen, from the Count de Mont- 
morin, as the one I obtained is from the Count de Vergennes. 



1 96 JONES'S LETTER TO JOHN JAY. 

]t would be highly flattering to me if I could carry a letter 
with me from Congress to his Most Christian Majesty, thank- 
ing him for the squadron he did us the honour to support un- 
der our flag. And on this occasion, sir, permit me, with be- 
coming diffidence, to recall the attention of my sovereign to 
the letter of recommendation I brought with me from the 
court of France, dated 30th May, 1780. It would be pleas- 
ing to me if that letter should be found to merit a place on 
the journals of Congress. Permit me also to entreat that 
Congress will be pleased to read the letter I received from the 
minister of marine, when his Majesty deigned to bestow on 
me a golden-hilted sword, emblematical of the happy alliance, 
— an honour which his Majesty never conferred on any other 
foreign officer. I owed the high favour I enjoyed at the 
court of France, in a great degree to the favourable testi- 
mony of my conduct which had been communicated by his 
Majesty's ambassador, under whose eye I acted in the most 
critical situation in the Texel, as well as to the public opinion 
of Europe. And the. letter with which I was honoured by 
the prime minister of France, when I was about to return to 
America, is a clear proof that we might have drawn still 
greater advantages from the generous disposition of our ally, 
if our marine had not been lost whilst I was, under perplex- 
ing circumstances, detained in Europe, after I had given the 
Count de Maurepas my plan for forming a combined squadron 
of ten or twelve sail of frigates, supported by the America, 
with a detachment of French troops on board ; the whole at 
the expense of his Majesty. 

" It is certain that I am much flattered by receiving a gold 
sword from the most illustrious monarch now living ; but I 
had refused to accept his commission on two occasions before 
that time, when some firmness was necessary to resist the 
temptation. He was not my sovereign ; I served the cause 
of freedom ; and honours from my sovereign would be more 
pleasing. Since the year 1775, when I displayed the Ameri- 



JONES'S CLAIMS. 197 

can flag for the first time with my own hands, I have been 
constantly devoted to the interests of America. Foreigners 
have, perhaps, given me too much credit, and this may have 
raised my ideas of my services above their real value ; but 
my zeal can never be over-rated. 

" I should act inconsistently if I omitted to mention the 
dreadful situation of our unhappy fellow-citizens in slavery 
at Algiers. Their almost hopeless fate is a deep reflection on 
our national character in Europe. I beg leave to influence 
the humanity of Congress in their behalf, and to propose that 
some, expedient may be adopted for their redemption. A 
fund might be raised for that purpose by a duty of a shilling 
per month from seamen's wages throughout the continent, and 
I am persuaded that no difficulty would be made to that 
requisition. 

I have the honour to be, 
Sir, &c, &c. 

" Paul Jones." 

The manner in which Jones had divided the quotas, and 
the magnitude of his private claims for personal expenses 
while engaged in this service, did not satisfy the Board of 
Treasury of the United States, and their report highly 
offended him. He, however, made out what, allowing for a 
considerable alloy of self-eulogium, inseparable from all his 
vindicatory writings, may be called a triumphant case. 
" The settlement," he says, " that I made with the court of 
France had first Dr. Franklin's and afterwards Mr. Jeffer- 
son's approbation, in every stage and article of the business ; 
and I presume it will be found, at least so far as depended on 
me, to merit that of the United States. The Board of 
Treasury have been pleased in their report to treat me as a 
mere agent, though employed in that delicate national con- 
cern. In France I was received and treated by-lhe king and 
his ministers as a general officer and a special minister from 
17* 



198 JONES'S CLAIMS. 

Congress. The credit with which I am honoured as an 
officer, in the opinion of Europe, and the personal intimacy I 
have with many great characters at Paris, with my exclusive 
knowledge of all circumstances relative to the business, en- 
sured me a success which no other man could have obtained. 
My situation subjected me to a considerable expense. I went 
to court much oftener, and mixed with the great much more 
frequently, than our minister plenipotentiary, yet the gentlemen 
in that situation consider their salary of two thousand a year 
as scarcely adequate to their expenses." But the reader is 
already so familiar with the services of the commodore to 
the public cause of America, that we spare them the repeti- 
tion which follows, and pass to the issue of this altercation, 
which was a resolution of Congress, passed a few days after- 
wards, declaring his distribution of the quotas valid, and 
allowing him the sum claimed as expended by him on this 
service. This was 47,972 livres, instead of the usual com- 
mission on sums recovered, which would not nearly have 
defrayed his expenses. 

To complete his triumph over the Board of Treasury, 
Congress, in a few days afterwards, unanimously resolved 
" that a gold medal should be struck, and presented to Cheva- 
lier J. Paul Jones, in commemoration of the valour and bril- 
liant services of that officer while in command of a squadron 
of French and American ships, under the flag and commis- 
sion of the States of America." It was farther resolved that 
a letter should be written to his Most Christian Majesty ; and 
accordingly, furnished with the following letter, Jones left 
the shores of America, which he was destined never again to 
revisit : 

" To His Most Christian Majesty, Louis, King of France and Navarre. 
" Great and beloved Friend ! 

■' We, the United States in Congress assembled, in con- 
sideration of the distinguished marks of approbation with 
which your Majesty has been pleased to honour the Chevaliei 



LETTER OF CONGRESS. 1Q9 

John Paul Jones, as well as from a sense of his merit, have 
unanimously directed a medal of gold to be struck and pre- 
sented to him, in commemoration of his valour and brilliant 
services while commanding a squadron of French and Ameri- 
can ships, under our flag and commission, off the coast of 
Great Britain, in the late war. 

" As it is his earnest desire to acquire knowledge in his pro- 
fession, we cannot forbear requesting of your Majesty to per- 
mit him to embark in your fleets of evolution, where only it 
will be probably in his power to acquire that degree of 
knowledge which may hereafter render him most extensively 
useful. 

" Permit us to repeat to your Majesty, our sincere assur- 
ances, that the various and important benefits for which we 
are indebted to your friendship will never cease to interes* us 
in whatever may concern the happiness of your Majesty, 
your family, and people. We pr^y God to keep you, our 
great and beloved friend, under his holy protection. 
" Done at the city of New York, the 16th day of October, 
in the year of our Lord 1787, and of our Sovereignty 
and Independence the 12th." 

It is not probable, though just possible, that, before this last 
departure for Europe, Jones was aware, that, in conversation 
with M. de Simolin, the Russian ambassador at Paris, Mr. 
Jefferson had proposed him to serve Russia in the Black Sea. 
This conversation arose in consequence of the disasters which 
had befallen her Imperial Majesty's fleet in a tempest in the 
month of September of that year. During the late negotia-. 
tions about the prize-money, Jones had come in close contact 
with Mr. Jefferson, who immediately succeeded to Franklin 
as ambassador, and had gained his friendship and esteem 
Though he might not be aware thus early of this private 
treaty concerning him, there is no room to doubt that, with 
<\\ the indifference and coquettish reluctance he afterwards 



200 



JONES IN LONDON. 




Thomas Jefferson. 



thought fit to affect, he was from the first moment dazzled 
and infatuated by the prospects which thus opened so unex- 
pectedly upon him in a new career of glory and distinction. 
He landed at Dover from stress of weather, and, after spend- 
ing a few days in London, and making certain arrangements 
with the American ambassador there, respecting the Danish 
claims, went to Paris, and was there at least informed by Mr. 



JONES IN COPENHAGEN. 201 

Jefferson of the high destinies which probably awaited him 
in Russia. He accordingly deferred delivering the letter 
which he bore from Congress to his most Christian Majesty, 
ill a more convenient season, and set out for Copenhagen in 
nid-winter, ostensibly only to solicit indemnification for the 
prizes so long before delivered up to the English minister, but 
in reality to draw a step nearer to St. Petersburgh. There is 
no evidence that the court of Russia had ever thought of John 
Paul Jones as a naval commander till M. de Simolin had 
written home, " that with the chief command of the fleet, and 
carte blancke, he would undertake that in a year Paul Jones 
would make Constantinople tremble." 

Jones was furnished with letters to the French ambassador 
at Copenhagen, and other influential persons, and gives this 
account of his reception in that capital : — 

" I have been so much indisposed since my arrival here the 
4th, from the fatigue and excessive cold I suffered on the road, 
that I have been obliged to confine myself almost constantly 
to my chamber. I have kept my bed for several days ; but I 
now feel myself better, and hope the danger is over. On my 
arrival I paid my respects to the minister of France. He 
received me with great kindness ; we went, five days ago, to 
the minister of foreign affairs. I was much flattered with my 
reception, and our conversation was long and very particular 
respecting America and the new constitution, of which I pre- 
sented a copy. He observed, that it had struck him as a very 
dangerous power to make the president commander-in-chief : 
in other respects it appeared to please him much, as leading 
to a near and sure treaty of commerce between America and 
Denmark. It was a day of public business, and I could not 
do more than present your letter. I shall follow the business 
closely. In a few days, when I am re-established in health, 
I am to be presented to the whole court, and to sup with the 
King. I shall after that be presented to all the corps diplo- 
matique and other persons of distinction here. I am infinitelv 



202 JONES IN COPENHAGEN. 

indebted to the attentions I receive from the minister of France 
I made the inquiry you desired in Holland, and should then 
have written to you in consequence, had I not been assured, 
by authority, (M. Van Stophorst,) that I could not doubt that 
letters had been sent you on the subject, that could not fail of 
giving you satisfacton. M. Van Stophorst was very obliging. 
At Hamburgh I ordered the smoked beef you desired to be 
smt to you, to the care of the American agent at Havre de 
Grace ; you have nothing to do but receive it, paying what 
little charges may be on it. My ill health and fatigue on the 
road hindered me from preparing the extract of the engage- 
ment. When you see M. Littlepage, I pray you to present 
my kind compliments. It is said here, that the Empress con- 
fides the commerce of her fleet, that will pass the Sound, to 
Admiral Greig ; and that he means to call at an English port 
to take provisions, &c. The Hamburgh papers, I am told, 
have announced the death of Dr. Franklin. I shall be ex 
tremely concerned if the account prove true — God forbid !" 

A subsequent letter states, — 

" Yesterday his excellency the Baron de la Houge, minister 
plenipotentiary of France at this court, did me the honour to 
present me publicly to his Majesty, the Royal Family, and 
chief personages at the royal palace here. 

" 1 had a very polite and distinguished reception. The 
Queen Dowager conversed with me for some time, and said 
the most civil things. Her majesty has a dignity of person 
and deportment which becomes her well, and which she has 
the secret to reconcile with great affability and ease. The 
Princess Royal is a charming person, and the graces are so 
much her own that it is impossible to see and converse witn 
her without paying her that homage which artless beauty 
and good nature will ever command. All the Royal Family 
spoke to me except the King, who speaks to no person when 
presented. His Majesty saluted me with great complaisance 
at first, and as often afterwards as we met in the course of 



LETTER TO COUNT BERNSTORF. 203 

the evening. The Prince Royal is greatly beloved and ex- 
tremely affable ; he asked me a number of pertinent questions 
respecting America. I had the honour to be invited to sup 
with his Majesty and the Royal Family. The company at 
table (consisting of seventy ladies and gentlemen, including 
the Royal Family, the ministers of state, and foreign ambas- 
sadors) was v*ery brilliant." 

But this flattering reception, and abundance of diplomatic 
courtesy, did not long satisfy the negotiator, who was more- 
over engaged in another game with Baron Krudner, the 
Russian Envoy at this court, which interested him far more 
deeply. He was, in short, impatient to reach the goal of his 
new-sprung hopes, St. Petersburgh, and accordingly addressed 
Count Bernstorf in his best style of diplomacy: — 

Captain Paul Jones to Count Bernstorf. 

" Copenhagen, 24th March, 1788. 
" From the act of Congress, (the act by which I am honoured 
with a gold medal,) I had the honour to show your Excellency 
the 21st of this month, as well as from the conversation that fol- 
lowed, you must be convinced that circumstances do not permit 
me to remain here ; but that I am under the necessity, .ejiher to 
return to France or to proceed to Russia. — As the minister 
of the United States of America at Paris gave me the perusal 
of the packet he wrqte by me, and which I had the honour 
to present to you on my arrival bore, it is needlees to go into 
any detail on the object of my mission to this court ; which 
Mr. Jefferson has particularly explained. The promise you 
have given me, of a prompt and explicit decision, from this 
Court, on the act of Congress of the 25th of October last, in- 
spires me with full confidence. I have been very particular 
in communicating to the United States all the polite attentions 
with which I have been honoured at this Court ; and they will 
learn with great pleasure the kind reception T had from you. 
I felicitated mvself on being the instrument to setlle the del»- 



204 CORRKSFONDENCE 

"ate national business in question, with a minister who con- 
ciliates the views of the wise statesman with the noble senti- 
ments and cultivated mind of the true philosopher and man of 
letters." 

Paul Jones to Count Btrnslorj. 

"Copenhagen, March 30, 17S8. 

" Your silence on the subject of my mission from the 
United States to this court leaves me in the most painful 
suspense ; the more so, as I have made your Excellency ac- 
quainted with the promise I am under to proceed as soon as 
possible to St. Petersburgh. This being the ninth year since 
the three prizes reclaimed by the United States were seized 
upon in the port of Bergen, in Norway, it is to be presumed 
that this court has long since taken an ultimate resolution 
respecting the compensation demand made by Congress. 
Though I am extremely sensible of the favourable reception 
with which I have been distinguished at this court, and am 
particularly flattered by the polite attentions with which you 
have honoured me at every conference ; yet I have remarked, 
with great concern, that you have never led the conversation 
to the object of my mission here. A man of your liberal 
sentiments will not, therefore, be surprised, or offended at my 
plain dealing, when I repeat that I impatiently expect a 
prompt and categorical answer, in writing, from this Court, 
to the act of Congress of the 25th of October last. Both my 
duty and the circumstances of my situation constrain me to 
make this demand in the name of my sovereign the United 
States of America ; but I beseech you to believe, that though 
I am extremely tenacious of the honour of the American flag, 
vet my personal interest in the decision I now ask would 
never have induced me to present myself at this Court. You 
are too just, sir, to delay my business here ; which would put 
me under the necessity to break the promise I have made to 
her Imperial Majesty, conformable to your advice." 



WITH COUNT BERNSTORF. 205 

Count Bernstmf to Paul Jones. 

"Copenhagen, April 4, 1738. 
" Sir, 

" You have requested of me an answer to the letter you 
did me the honour to remit me from Mr. Jefferson, minister 
plenipotentiary of the United States of America, near his 
most Christian Majesty. I do it with so much more pleasure, 
as you have inspired me with as much interest as confidence, 
and this occasion appears to me favourable to make known 
the sentiments of the King, my master, on the objects to 
which we attach so much importance. Nothing can be 
farther from the plans and the wishes of his majesty than to 
let fall a negotiation which has only been suspended in con- 
sequence of circumstances arising from the necessity of ma- 
turing a new situation, so as to enlighten himself on their re- 
ciprocal interests, and to avoid the inconvenience of a pre- 
cipitate and imperfect arrangement. I am authorized, sir, to 
give you, and through you to Mr. Jefferson, the word of the 
King, that his majesty will renew the negotiation for a treaty 
of amity and commerce in the forms already agreed upon, 
at the instant that the new constitution (that admirable plan, 
so w T orthy of the wisdom of the most enlightened men) will 
have been adopted by the States, to which nothing more was 
wanted to assure to itself a perfect consideration. If it has 
not been possible, sir, to discuss, definitively with you, neithei 
the principal object nor its accessories, the idea of eluding 
the question, or of retarding the decision, had not the least 
part in it. I have already had the honour to express to you, 
in our conversations, that your want of plenipotentiary powers 
from Congress was a natural and invincible obstacle. It 
would be, likewise, contrary to the established custom to 
change the seat of negotiation, which has not been broken 
off, but only suspended, thereby to transfer it from Paris to 
Copenhagen. 
IS 



206 CORRESPONDENCE WITH COUNT BERNSTORF. 

" 1 have only one favour to ask of you, sir, that you 
would be the interpreter of our sentiments in regard to the 
United States. It would be a source of gratification to me 
to think that what I have said to you on this subject carries 
with it that conviction of the truth which it merits. We de- 
sire to form with them connexions, solid, useful and essential ; 
we wish to establish them on bases natural and immovable. 
The momentary clouds, the incertitudes, which the misfor- 
tunes of the times brought with them, exist no longer. We 
should no longer recollect it, but to feel in a more lively man- 
ner the happiness of a more fortunate period ; and to show 
ourselves more eager to prove the dispositions most proper 
to effect an union, and to procure reciprocally the advantages 
which a sincere alliance can afford, and of which the two 
countries are susceptible. These are the sentiments which I 
can promise you, sir, on our part, and we flatter ourselves to 
find them likewise in America ; nothing, then, can retard the 
conclusion of an arrangement, which I am happy to see so 
far advanced." 

Paul Jones to Count Bernstorf. 

" Copenhagen, April 5, 1788. 

" I pray your Excellency to inform me when I can have 
the honour to wait on you, to receive the letter you have 
been kind enough to promise to write me, in answer to the 
act of Congress of the 25th October last. As you have told 
me that my want of plenipotentiary powers to terminate ulti- 
mately the business now on the carpet, between the Court and 
the United States, has determined you to authorize the Baron 
de Blome, to negotiate and settle the same with Mr. Jefferson 
at Paris, and to conclude, at the same time, an advantageous 
treaty of commerce between Denmark and the United States, 
— my business here will of course be at an end when I shall 
have received your letter and paid you my thanks in person 
for the very polite attentions with which you have honoured 
me.'* 



LETTER OF BARON KRUDNER. 207 

From Baron Krudner, shortly after his arrival, Jones 
received the following letter, which of itself denotes a fore- 
gone conclusion, and his acceptance of the invitation 01 

Russia : — 

(Translation.) 

« Sir, 

" I am much disappointed at not meeting you at Court, as 
I had promised myself, but a slight indisposition prevented 
me from going abroad ; besides, I have been agreeably occu- 
pied in writing letters. My Sovereign will learn with plea- 
sure the acquisition which she has made in your great talents. 
I have her commands for your acceptance of the grade of 
Captain Commandant, with the rank of Major General, in 
her service, and that you should proceed as soon as your 
affairs permit ; the intention of her Imperial Majesty being to 
give you a command in the Black Sea, and under the orders 
of Prince Potemkin, from the opening of the campaign. The 
immortal glory by which you have illustrated your name 
cannot make you indifferent to the fresh laurels you must 
gather in the new career which opens to you. I have the 
honour of being on this occasion the interpreter of those sen- 
timents of esteem with which for a long period your brilliant 
exploits have inspired her Imperial Majesty. Under a Sove- 
reign so magnanimous, in pursuing glory you need not doubt 
of the most distinguished rewards, and that every advantage 
of fortune will await you," &c. &c. 

This was so far well, but did not entirely come up to he 
high-raised expectations of Jones. In a letter to Jefferson 
about this same time, he says, " Before you can receive this, 
M. de Simolin will have informed you that your proposal to 
him, and his application on that idea, have been well leceived. 
The matter is communicated to me here, in the most flatter- 
ing terms, by a letter I have received from his Excellency 
the Baron de Krudner." This is indeed perfectly contradie 



208 LETTER OF BARON KRUDNER. 

tory of the statement Jones gives in the introduction to his 
Journal of the Campaign of the Liman, where the proposal 
of M. de Simolin is represented as quite spontaneous, and 
treated by himself at first as chimerical ; but this is evidently 
the correct one. " There seems," he continues, " to remain 
some difficulty respecting the letter of M. de Simolin's propo- 
sal, though it is accepted in substance ;" he then expresses 
his gratitude to the Russian Ambassador, and to Mr. Little- 
page, who had contributed so materially to his success in 
this affair. In a subsequent letter to Jefferson, written imme- 
diately before leaving Copenhagen, after enumerating his 
services, and mentioning what they might have been had 
he possessed more ample diplomatic powers, he introduces 
the subject nearest his heart. Russia had demurred to 
his demand of the rank of Rear- Admiral. " If Congress," he- 
says, " should think I deserve the promotion that was pro- 
posed when I was in America, and should condescend to 
confer on me the grade of Rear- Admiral, from the day I 
took the Serapis, (23d September, 1779, exactly nine years 
before,) I am persuaded it would be very agreeable to the 
Empress, who now deigns to offer me an equal rank in hei 
service, although I never had the honour to draw my sword 
in her cause, nor to do any other act that could merit her 
imperial benevolence." He afterwards continues : " The 
mark I mentioned of the approbation of that honourable 
body, (Congress) would be extremely flattering to me in the 
career I am now to pursue, and would stimulate all my ambi- 
tion to acquire the necessary talents to merit that, and even 
greater favours at a future day. I pray you, Sir, to explain 
the circumstances of my situation ; and be the interpreter of 
my sentiments to the United States in Congress. I ask for 
nothing, and beg leave to be understood only as having hinted 
what is natural to conceive, that the mark of approbation I 
'mentioned could not fail' to be infinitely serviceable to my 
views and success in the country where I am going." Ser- 



JONES'S ANSWER. 099 

viceable this piece of idle distinction might have been in 
smoothing the difficulties thrown in the way of his obtaining 
the rank of Rear- Admiral, for which he stipulated on enter- 
ing the Russian service, and which, as appears from his 
former letter to Jefferson, and from the letter of Baron Krud- 
ner, given above, was refused at the outset. Though not 
disposed to break off his engagement, neither was he willing 
to give up his claims to the desired grade without a strenuous 
effort. He immediately replied to the Baron, going over the 
whole ground : — " I am extremely flattered," he says, " by 
the obliging things expressed in the letter your Excellency 
has done me the honour to write me yesterday. The very 
favourable sentiments with which my zeal for the cause of 
America, rather than my professional skill, has inspired her 
Imperial Majesty, fills me with an irresistible desire to merit 
tbe precious opinion with which her Majesty deigns to honour 
me. Though I cannot conceive the reason why any diffi- 
culty should be made to my being admitted into the marine 
of her Imperial Majesty as Rear- Admiral, a rank to which 1 
have some claim, and that it should at the same time be pro- 
posed to give me the grade of Major-General, to which 1 
have no title, it is not my intention to withdraw from the 
engagement which you have formed in my name, in the 
letter you addressed your Court on the 23d current. You 
will be convinced by the papers I have the honour to submit 
to your inspection, that I am not an adventurer in search of 
fortune. You will discover, I presume, that my talents have 
been .considerable ; but that, loving glory, I am perhaps too 
much attached to honours, though personal interest is an idol 
to which I have never bowed the knee. The unbounded 
admiration and profound respect which I have long felt for 
the glorious character of her Imperial Majesty, forbids the 
idea that a sovereign so magnanimous should sanction any 
arrangement that may give pain at the outset to the man she 
deigns to honour with her notice, and who wishes 10 devote 
18* 



210 JONES AT ST. PETERSBURGH. 

himself entirely to her service. A conjoined command is 
hurtful, and often fatal in military operations. There is no 
military man who is so entirely master of his passions as to 
keep free of jealousy and its consequences in such circum- 
stances. Being quite a stranger, I have more to fear from a 
conjoined command than any other officer in the service of 
her Imperial Majesty. I cannot imagine why her Majesty 
should think it best to divide the command on the Black Sea ; 
and if the direction of that department be already confided to 
an officer of sufficient ability and experience, I do not seek 
to interfere with his command." 

Jones was already aware of the appointment of the Prince 
of Nassau, and even thus early foresaw many of the probable 
difficulties of his situation; but he had that confidence in 
himself which gave him assurance of triumphing over them^ 
and proceeded, if not blindfold, yet determined not to see. 
We leave to his own narrative the account of his almost 
romantic journey from Copenhagen to St. Petersburgh. In 
that capital he was received with a distinction which might 
have turned the soundest head. His very manner of approach 
had disposed people to gaze on the American hero as a won- 
der; his door was besieged with carriages, and his table 
loaded with invitations. In short, he was now in Russia, and 
the man whom, for the time, the Empress delighted to honour ; 
the expected conqueror of the Turks; and it might be, a 
future Potemkin.* 

At this curiously-timed juncture he received a patent from 
the King of Denmark, granting him for life an annual pen- 
sion of 1500 Danish crowns, " for the respect he had shown 
to the Danish flag while he commanded in the North Seas." 

* The cards of many of the Russian nobility received at this time, and of 
the whole host of Members of Legation, Envoys, Residents, &c, in short, all 
the component parts of a great court, still remain among the papers of Paul 
Jones, who through life seems to have been peculiarly diligent in the accumu- 
lation of such " frail memorials." 



PENSION NOT PAID. 211 

To pension the agent whose claims for his constituents are 
deferred or evaded, is at all times a somewhat suspicious 
circumstance ; though this grant being unexpected and unso 
licited, Jones stands clear in what he himself justly calls " an 
embarrassing situation." It was three years before he even 
mentioned this grant to his American friends ; and had his 
affairs prospered, it is probable he never would have looked 
after it. As it was, when his large expenditure in Russia 
made it necessary to draw on this fund, which he did with 
the sanction of certain American gentlemen, whose advice 
he requested, he never received a single crown of the sponta- 
neous royal grant thus pressed upon him. 

For a fortnight Jones remained at St. Petersburgh, " feasted 
at court, and in the first society." * The Empress," he 
writes to La Fayette, " received me with a distinction the 
most flattering that perhaps any stranger can boast of on en 
tering the Russian service. Her Majesty conferred on me 
immediately, the grade of Rear- Admiral. I was detained 
against my will, a fortnight, and continually feasted at Court 
and in the first society. This was a cruel grief to the Eng- 
lish ; and I own their vexation, which I believe was general 
in and about St. Petersburgh, gave me pain." Before the 
year elapsed, the Rear- Admiral found some cause to change 
his opinions in many things ; and even respecting the English 
at St. Petersburgh. He was about this time at least three- 
fourths Russian. We hear no longer of America as his sole 
country, though he assumes a certain patronizing air towards 
that young State. " I certainly wish to be useful to a country 
which I have so long served. I love the people and their 
cause, and shall always rejoice when I can be useful to pro- 
mote their happiness." " What are you about, my dear 
General ? are you so absorbed in politics as to be insensible 
to glory ? that is impossible, — quit then your divine Calypso, 
",ome here and pay your court to Bellona, who you are sure 
will receive you as her favourite. You would be charmed 



ZU LETTER FROM THE EMPRESS. 

with Prince Potemkin. He is a most amiable man, and none 
can be more noble-minded. For the Empress, fame has 
never yet done her justice. 1 am sure that no stranger who 
has not known that illustrious character, ever conceived how 
much her Majesty is made to reign over a great empire, to 
make people happy, and to attach grateful and susceptible 
minds. Is not the present a happy moment for France to 
declare for Russia 1" Such were the extraordinary lights that 
had suddenly dawned upon the former champion of liberty 
and asserter of the " dignity of human nature." 

A few weeks before the above letter was despatched to La 
Fayette, the Empress, with her own hand, had written to the 
Rear-Admiral, enclosing a letter from M. de Simolin, regard- 
ing his affairs. Though disappointed of sole command, as 
will appear in the subjoined narrative, he still continued to be^ 
dazzled with his prospects. The letter of her Imperial 
Majesty, who spared no pains in carrying a favourite point, 
as well as its enclosure, deserves to be preserved: — 

From the Empress Catherine to Rear- Admiral Paul Jones. 

" Sir, — A courier from Paris has just brought from my 
Envoy in France, M. de Simolin, the enclosed letter to Count 
Besborodko. As I believe that this letter may help to con- 
firm to you what I have already told you verbally, I have 
sent it, and beg you to return it, as I have not even made a 
copy be taken, so anxious am I that you should see it. I 
hope that it will efface all doubts from your mind, and prove 
to you that you are to be connected only with those who are 
most favourably disposed towards you. I have no doubt but 
that on your side you will fully justify the opinion which we 
nave formed of you, and apply yourself with zeal to support 
the reputation and the name you have acquired for valour 
and skill on the element in which you are to serve. 
Adieu, 

I wish you happiness and health 
Catherine." 



LETTER OF M. DE SIMOLIN. 213 

Extract of the Letter from M. de Simolin to Count de Besborodko, enclosed 
in the above. 

"The letter with which your Excellency favoured me on 
the 16th February, was delivered by Mr. Poliranoff. By it I 
was informed of the resolution of her Imperial Majesty on 
the subject of the engagement with the Chevalier Paul Jones ; 
and the same day Lieutenant-Colonel de Baner, who was 
despatched from St. Elizabeth, by Prince Potemkin on the 
9th March, brought me two letters, the subject of one of 
which was the said Chevalier Jones, whom he requested me 
to induce to repair to his head-quarters as quickly as possible, 
that he might employ his talents at the opening of the cam- 
paign ; and assure him that in entering the service, he, (Potem- 
kin,) would do all that depended on him to make his situation 
pleasant and advantageous, and certainly procure for him 
occasions in which he might display his skill and valour.' 
" Has he kept his word ?" says Jones in a note long after- 
wards affixed to this letter, which at the moment must have 
given him so much pleasure. 

Such were the flattering auspices under which Paul Jones 
entered the service of Russia. From this point his history 
will be continued for some time by the most interesting por- 
tion of his remaining papers — his Journal of the Campaign 
of the Liman. 




SI 4 



LETTER TO JEFFERSON. 



CHAPTER IX. 




^HIS narrative is now arrived at a 
J, period in which it can be for some 
I time continued in the most desira- 
H ble way, namely, by the Journal 
/ of the Rear-Admiral, kept by him- 
self on the scene of action during 
§lhis memorable campaign against 
the Turks, afterwards extended at 
St. Petersburgh and Warsaw, and' 
prepared for publication at Paris. 
Had he acted with his usual promptitude and decision ip 
openly withdrawing from the service which had been tc 
him one of misery and bondage, in which all the bette 
qualities and higher energies of his mind were converter 
into the means of self-torture, he would unquestionably have 
published this Journal himself, if not in France, either in 
England or America. He long contemplated the necessity 
of both these steps, and all along felt that his leave of absence 
for two years was in fact a virtual dismission ; but, by the 
strange fatality, which often appears to enchain a man's will 
in spite of the suggestions of his reason, he lingered on till 
death closed the scene. 

In a letter written to Mr. Jefferson, twenty months after he 
had been exiled from Russia, and when his last remaining 
hopes in life began to turn to America, his first country, he says, 
" As it has been and still is my first wish, and my highest 
ambition, to show myself worthy of the flattering marks of 
esteem with which I have been honoured by my country, I 
think it my duty to lay before you, both as my particular 



LETTER TO JEFFERSON. ^16 

friend and as a public minister, the papers I now enclose 
relative to my connexion with Russia, viz., three pieces dated 
St. Petersburgh, and signed by the Count de Segur ; a letter 
from me dated at Paris last summer, and sent to the Prince 
de Potemkin ; and a letter from me to the Empress, dated a 
few days afterwards, enclosing eleven pieces as numbered in 
the margin. I have selected those testimonies from a great 
variety of perhaps still stronger proofs in my hands; but, 
though the Baron de Grimm* has undertaken to transmit to 
her Imperial Majesty's own hands my last packet, I shall not 
be surprised if I should find myself obliged to withdraw from 
the service of Russia, and to publish my Journal of the Cam- 
paign (in which) I commanded. In that case I hope to prove 
to the world that my operations not only saved Cherson and 
the Crimea, but decided the fate of the war." 

The Journal is written in disjointed portions, and in a spirit 
of alternate bitterness and boasting, which the indulgent 
reader must attribute to the personal feelings from which the 
work arose. The injustice, mortification, and persecution 
endured by the man and the officer must plead the apology 
of the author. 

To the historian this Journal is of considerable value. It 
places in an entirely new aspect one of the most memorable 
of the campaigns between Russia and the Porte ; and affords 
a clue, were that any longer needed, to the crooked and 
debasing spirit of intrigue by which the domestic policy of 
Russia was conducted, even under the auspices of the great 
Catherine. 



* Baron Grimm was a sort of man-of-all-work for the Empress Catherine 
II., whose business was to despatch, as frequently as possible, all the scandal, 
literary gossip, and political intelligence, his peculiar industry could pick up 
in Paris, for the information or amusement of the Empress and her Court. 
The German had too m ich tact to be the means of transmitting anything 
disagreeable 



210 INTRODUCTION TO JOURNAL. 

"Introduction to the Journal of Rear-Admiral Paul Jones's Campaign in the 
Liman in 17S8. 

" The United States of America having charged me with 
a mission of a political nature to the Court of Denmark, and 
having at. the same time given me a letter to deliver person- 
ally to his Most Christian Majesty, Louis XVI., I embarked 
at New York on the 11th November, 1787, in an American 
vessel bound for Holland, the captain of which agreed to land 
me in France. 

" After a voyage of a month, I landed at Dover, in Eng- 
land, not being able to get ashore in France. From Dover I 
went to London, where I saw the minister of the United 
States. I passed some days with my friends there, and went 
to Covent Garden Theatre. I afterwards set out for Paris, 
where I arrived on the 20th December. 

" Mr. Jefferson, the Ambassador of the United States, 
visited me on the night of my arrival, and informed me that 
M. de Simolin, minister plenipotentiary of her Imperial 
Majesty of all the Russias, had often spoken of me while I 
was in America, and appeared anxious that I should agree to 
go to Russia, to command the fleet against the Turks in the 
Black Sea. I regarded this proposal as a castle in the air ; 
and as I did not wish to be employed in foreign service, I 
avoided meeting M. de Simolin, for whose character I had, 
at the same time, the highest respect. 

" As the letter, of which I was the bearer to the King of 
France, concerned myself alone, my friends advised me not to 
seek an interview with his Majesty, till after my return from 
Denmark. In that letter the United States requested his 
Majesty to permit me to embark in his fleet of evolution, -to 
complete my knowledge of naval tactics, and of military and 
maritime operations upon the great scale. 

" Speaking to a man of very high rank at Paris, I informed 
him of the proposal communicated to me by Mr. Jefferson. 



INTRODUCTION TO JOURNAL. 217 

He replied, that ' he would advise me to go to Constantinople 
at once rather than enter the service of Russia.'* 

" On the 1st of February, 1788, at the moment of my de- 
parture from Paris, I received a note from Mr. Littlepage, 
chamberlain to the King of Poland, earnestly requesting me 
to breakfast with him next morning, as he had matters of the 
utmost importance to communicate to me. I went to him 
that same night, and he told me that M. de Simolin had the 
greatest desire to converse with me before my departure, and 
that he expected him to breakfast with us next day. 

" M. de Simolin said the most polite and obliging things to 
me, — that, having known me well by reputation whilst he 
was ambassador in England, and since he had come to 
France, he had already proposed me to his Sovereign as 
commander of the fleet in the Black Sea, and that he ex- 
pected her Imperial Majesty would make me proposals in 
consequence. I could not yet look upon the affair very 
seriously ; but I was much flattered with the opinion of M. 
de** Simolin, to whom I expressed my gratitude. When he 
had left the house, Mr. Littlepage assured me that he had 
written to his Court, that « if her Imperial Majesty confided 
to me the chief command of her fleet on the Black Sea, with 
carte blanche, he would answer for it that in less than a year 
I should make Constantinople tremble." 

" In Denmark I put in train a treaty between that power 
and the United States ; but this arrangement was interrupted 

* Whether from a magnanimous sense of justice, or dislike to his asso 
ciates and rivals, or, as is probable, a mixture of these motives, Paul Jones, in 
'Jie course of the campaign, became somewhat Turkish, and a warm admirer 
of the Capitan Pacha. In the Journal he does the Turks ample justice ; and 
in a letter to Baron de la Houze, the minister of France at Copenhagen, we 
find him saying, — " I have much to tell you respecting the 'moustaches of the 
Capitan Pacha,' " of which the Baron had probably jocularly desired Paul 
Jones to send him a good account ; " he is a very brave man, and the public 
have been much deceived as to our affairs with him." 
19 



218 VOYAGE IN THE BALTIC 

by the arrival of a courier from St. Petersburgh, despatched 
express by the Empress, to invite me to repair to her Court. 

" Though I foresaw many obstacles in the way of my en- 
tering the service of Russia, I believed that I could not avoid 
going to St. Petersburgh, to thank the Empress for the 
favourable opinion she had conceived of me. I transferred 
the treaty going forward at Copenhagen to Paris, to be con- 
cluded there, and set out for St. Petersburgh by Sweden. 
At Stockholm I staid but one night, to see Count Rasaumor- 
sky. Want of time prevented me from appearing at Court. 

" At Gresholm I was stopped by the ice, which prevented 
me from crossing the Gulf of Bothnia, and even from ap- 
proaching the first of the isles in the passage. After having 
made several unsuccessful efforts to get to Finland by the 
isles, I imagined that it might be practicable to effect my ob- 
ject by doubling the ice to the southward, and entering the 
Baltic Sea. 

" This enterprise was very daring, and had never before 
been attempted. But by the north the roads were impractica- 
ble, and, knowing that the Empress expected me from day to 
day, I could not think of going back by Elsineur. 

" I left Gresholm early one morning, in an undecked pas- 
sage-boat, about thirty feet in length. I made another boat fol- 
low, of half that size. This last was for dragging over the 
ice, and for passing from one piece of ice to another, to gain 
the coast of Finland. I durst not make my project known 
to the boatmen, which would have been the sure means of 
defeating it. After endeavouring, as before, to gain the first 
isle, I made them steer for the south, and we kept along the 
coast of Sweden all the day, finding difficulty enough to pass 
between the ice and the shore. Towards night, being almost 
opposite Stockholm, pistol in hand I forced the boatmen to 
enter the Baltic sea, and steer for the coast. We ran near the 
coast of Finland. All night the wind was fair, and we hoped 
to land next day. This we found impossible. The ice did 



ARRIVAL AT ST. PETERSBURGH. 219 

not permit us to approach the shore, which we only saw from 
a distance. It was impossible to regain the Swedish side, the 
wind being high and directly contrary. I had nothing left for 
it but to stand for the Gulf of Finland. There was a small 
compass in the boat, and I fixed the lamp of my travelling 
carriage so as to throw a light on it. 



Crossing the Baltic. 

" On the same night we lost the small boat ; but the men 
saved themselves in the large one, which with difficulty es- 
caped the same fate. At the end of four days we landed at 
Revel, where our enterprise was regarded as a kind of mira- 
cle. Having satisfied the boatmen for their services and their 
loss, 1 gave them a good pilot, with the provisions necessary 
for making their homeward voyage, when the weather should 
become more favourable. 

" I arrived at St. Petersburgh in the evening on the 23d of 
April, old style, and on the 25th had my first audience of the 
Empress. Her Majesty gave me so flattering a reception, 
and up to the period of my departure treated me with so much 



220 APPOINTED ADMIRAL, 

distinction, that I was overcome by her courtesies (je me 
laissai seduire,) and put myself into her hands without making 
any stipulation for my personal advantage. I demanded but 
one favour, ' that I should never be condemned unheard.' 

" On the 7th May I set out from the Imperial Palace, carry- 
ing with me a letter from her Majesty to his Highness the 
Prince-Marshal Potemkin at St. Elizabeth, where I arrived on 
the 19th. The Prince-Marshal received me with much kind- 
ness, and destined me the command of the fleet of Serastapole 
against the Capitan Pacha, who, he supposed, intended to make 
a descent in the Crimea. His Highness was mistaken in this, 
and the next day he received information that the Capitan 
Pacha was at anchor within Kinbourn, having come to suc- 
cour Oczakow with a hundred and twenty armed vessels and 
other armed craft. 

" The Prince-Marshal then requested me to assume com- 
mand of the naval force stationed in the Liman, (which is at 
the embouchure of the Dnieper,) to act against the Capitan 
Pacha till Oczakow should fall. I considered this change of 
destination as a flattering mark of confidence ; and having 
received my orders, I set out on the same day for Cherson, in 
company with the Chevalier de Ribas, Brigadier du Jour of 
the Prince-Marshal. He was ordered to make all the arrange- 
ments necessary to place me in command. At parting, the 
Prince-Marshal promised me to bring forward his troops 
without loss of time, to co-operate with the maritime force he 
had intrusted to my command ; and on the journey M. de 
Ribas told me, * that all the force of the Liman, comprehending 
that of the Prince of Nassau, would be under my orders.' 

" I spent but one evening and night at Cherson. But even 
this short period was enough to show that I had entered on a 
delicate and disagreeable service. Rear- Admiral Mordwinoff, 
chief of the Admiralty, did not affect to disguise his displeasure 
at my arrival ; and though he had orders from the Prince- 
Marshal to communicate to me all the details concerning the 



CHARACTER OF ALEXIANO. 221 

force in the Liman, and to put me in possession of the flag 
belonging to my rank as Rear- Admiral, he spared himself the 
trouble of compliance. 




Going on board the Wolodimer. 



" We set out early next morning for Glouboca, the arma- 
ment of the Liman being at anchor very near that place, in 
the roads of Schiroque, between the bar of the Dnieper and 
the embouchure of the river Bog. We went on board the 
Wolodimer before mid-day, where we found that Brigadier 
Alexiano had assembled all the commanders, to draw them 
into a cabal against my authority. I may mention here, that 
..his man was a Greek, as ignorant of seamanship as of mili- 
tary affairs, who, under an exterior and manners the most 
?ross, concealed infinite cunning, and, by affected plainness 
md hardihood of discourse, had the address to pass for a 
ilunt. honest man. Though a subject of Turkey, it was al- 
leged that he made war with the Mussulmans by attacking 
*he> commerce in the Archipelago on his own authority, and 
.19* 



222 JONES HOISTS HIS FLAG. 

that he had followed this means of enriching himself up to 
the period that Count D'Orloff arrivefd with the Russian fleet. 
Though I do not affirm the fact, several persons of credit have 
assured me that there are often pirates who infest the coast, 
and the isles between Constantinople and Egypt, who attack 
the commerce of all nations, and run down the vessels after 
having seized the cargoes and cut the throats of the crews 
Alexiano had been employed by Count D'Orloff. He had 
reached the rank of Brigadier. Alexiano was a good deal 
offended in the first instance, and afterwards made great 
merit with the Prince-Marshal, of the sacrifice which he 
affected to make in serving under me. He said, that if he 
withdrew, all the other officers would follow his example. 
The Prince-Marshal sent presents to his wife, and wrote him 
kindly, persuading him to remain in the service. All the 
difficulty he made was nothing more than a piece of ma- 
noeuvring to increase his importance ; for from what followed 
I know that, had he left the service, it would have been alone, 
and that no one would have regretted his absence. 

" To give time to those angry spirits to become calm, and 
to be able to decide on the part I should take, I proposed to 
Brigadier de Ribas, that we should together make a journey 
to Kinbourn, to see the entrance of the Dnieper and recon- 
noitre the position and strength of the Turkish fleet and 
flotilla. At my return all the officers appeared contented, 
and I hoisted my flag on board the Wolodimer, on the 26th 
of May, 1788. 

** The Prince of Nassau Siegen, whom I had known 
slightly at Paris, told me, ' that if we gained any advantage 
over the Turks, it was necessary to exaggerate it to the ut- 
most ; and that this was the counsel the Chevalier de Ribas 
had given him.' I replied, ' that I never had adopted this 
method of heightening my personal importance.' " 

The journal of the Rear-Admiral, after this introduction, is 
continued in the third person for some time ; and afterwards 



JOURNAL. 225 

goes on to the end as a narrative in the first person, which 
would have been desirable throughout ; it is, however, thought 
best to adhere faithfully to the original. 

Journal of the Campaign of the Liman in 1788, drawn up by 
Rear- Admiral Paul Jones, for the perusal of her Imperial 
Majesty of all the Russias, and now first published from 
his original Manuscript. 

" At the opening of this campaign the squadron of Cherson 
was obliged to remain for two days in the road of Schiroque, 
till the troops should embark which were to form part of the 
crew. The Prince of Nassau, who had been appointed com- 
mander of the flotilla, and who had by this time received on 
board all the troops intended for him, durst not venture to 
advance even four or five verstes without being escorted by 
three frigates. The Prince of Nassau was so apprehensive 
of danger, that on the 28th of May, Rear-Admiral Paul Jones, 
commander of the squadron, reinforced him with a fourth 
frigate. 

" On the 29th, the troops being all on board, the squadron 
advanced, and led on the flotilla, which lay scattered about 
at anchor without any observance of order. The squadron 
drew up opposite the first village, to the left of the Bog, in an 
obtuse angle, and thus commanded, by a cross-fire, the only 
passage of the Liman. This lies between two sand-banks, 
through which the Turks must advance with their heavy 
vessels. By this position the Rear-Admiral covered Cherson, 
and the country on both banks of the Liman, made good the 
free passage of the Bog to the army of the Prince Marshal, 
and held the Turks in check in any attempt they might make 
against Kinbourn. 

" The Prince of Nassau at this time talked a great deal 
of projects of descents, surprises, and attacks, but without 
any rational plan. 



226 COUNCIL OF WAR. 

" A battery having been raised upon the point of Stanislaus 
the Prince of Nassau expressed himself delighted with it, as 
in case of necessity he might there find shelter. The Rear- 
Admiral could not have retreated, as several of his vessels 
were already within a few inches of getting aground. The 
Rear- Admiral was aware that the Turks, having a very su- 
perior force, would not give any opportunity of attacking them ; 
and that it was therefore necessary to maintain the strong 
position he had taken, till the advance of Prince Potemkin, in 
order to concert plans, and combine his operations with those 
of the land forces. 

" In the meanwhile, General SuwarofF, commandant of 
Kinbourn, made the Rear-Admiral responsible for the safety 
of that place ; while Brigadier Alexiano and the Prince of 
Nassau did all that was possible to make him distrustful of 
the means which he possessed for attack or defence. They 
alleged, that the vessels forming the flotilla, having been 
constructed merely to convey the carriages of the Empress 
in her late progress, might be expected, at the first attack, to 
sink under the enormous weight of the guns. 

" The squadron made a formidable appearance, but had 
little real strength. The Wolodimer and the Alexander were 
but half-armed ; and both vessels were already within a few 
inches of touching the bottom, so shallow is the Liman for 
vessels of war. In this most critical situation, having no orders 
from his Highness the Prince-Marshal for his guidance, and 
knowing nothing either of his intentions, or of the actual po- 
sition of the army, the Rear-Admiral resolved on assembling 
a council of war, in conformity to the ordonnance of Peter 
the Great. The council he opened by a speech suited to the 
occasion, the main object of which was to show the necessity 
of a perfect understanding between the squadron and the 
flotilla ; and that, uniting heart and hand, and forgetting all 
personal considerations, they should determine to conquer, as 
the true glory of a patriot was to be useful to his country. 



ALEXIANO'S CONDUCT. 



227 





Affair of June 6th. 



" On the 6th* of June, at two in the morning, the Prince 
of Nassau advanced, with the greater part of the flotilla ; but 
retired at daybreak before a very inferior force. The Turks 
chased him, keeping up a cannonade, into the midst of the 
squadron, which, as had been arranged, advanced to take a 
position to support him. 

" This inspirited the Turks so much, that, during the night 
between the 6th and 7th, they threatened an attack. 

" At sunrise the Turks made sail ; and Brigadier Alexiano 
ran upon the deck of the Wolodimer, half-naked, exclaiming, 
like a frantic man, in French and Russian, that the Turks 
were going to attack and board us, and that we would be 
blown to pieces for having been so foolish as to leave our 
former position. He had, notwithstanding, in the council of 
war, given his voice in favour of the position we now actually 



* The Russians compute time by the old style, which sometimes produces 
in apparent confusion of dates in the Journal, — Paul Jones sometimes reck 
oning by the one mode and sometimes by the other 



228 COMBAT WITH THE TURKS, 

held. Brigadier Ribas, the captain, and all the crew, were 
witnesses of his extravagant and unjustifiable behaviour. 
" This proved a false alarm ; the Turkish fleet did not stir. 
" The Prince of Nassau came on board the Wolodimer, 
and the Rear- Admiral proposed to him to reconnoitre the 
enemy's fleet and flotilla. As they advanced together, the 
first division of the Turkish flotilla began to fire from their 
canoes, and raised their anchors and rowed forward towards 
our reserve, which they attacked briskly. At the same time 
several corps of Turkish troops advanced along the opposite 
bank, as if they intended to establish a post or battery to act 
on our flank. As our reserve had been posted to cover our 
right wing, the Prince of Nassau, who knew not what to do, 
proposed to make it draw up in the form of an arch {crocket 
de houlette,) the better to sustain the assault. The Rear-Ad- 
miral told him, that, on the contrary, it was necessary to lift 
the anchors with the utmost despatch, and to form in line of 
battle to meet the attack of the Turks. The combat having 
commenced according to this plan, the Rear- Admiral hastened 
along the lines, to issue orders to the squadron, and, above 
all, to make the remainder of the flotilla, posted between the 
ships and upon the left wing, advance. The wind being ad- 
verse, he made these vessels be towed by the ships' boats and 
other boats attached to the squadron ; and by an oblique 
movement formed in line of battle, with the intention of cutting 
off the retreat of the enemy, and galling him by a cross-fire. 
As soon as the Capitan Pacha perceived the manoeuvre of 
the Rear-Admiral, he came forward himself in his kirlangitch, 
having a very favourable wind, and made the second division 
of his flotilla advance. 

" At this time our reserve was very critically situated. A 
double chaloupe quitted the action, and four of our galleys 
were in danger of being captured. The Prince of Nassau, 
who did not relish going himself, sent Brigadier CorsacofF, who 
made these retreat. Instead of remaining with the reserve 



COMBAT WITH THE TURKS. 



229 




Combat with the Turks. 



which, being without a commander, was in very great dis- 
order, the Prince of Nassau quitted his own post, and stationed 
himself before the Rear-Admiral, where he could be of no use 
whatever. The Rear-Admiral went into the same boat with 
the Prince of Nassau, and again issued his orders along the 
line. Being now within cannon-shot of the enemy, he opened 
fire, advancing always in an oblique line to cut off the enemy's 
retreat. At the same time he despatched Brigadier Alexiano 
to endeavour to rally the vessels of the reserve, which the 
Prince of Nassau had deserted ; but Alexiano contented him- 
self with waving his hat in the air, and shouting from behind 
the lines,—' Fire, my lads, on the kirlangitch of the Capitan 
Pacha!' 

" When the line led on by the Rear-Admiral came + o close 

fire with the enemy, their flotilla was thrown into the utmost 

confusion. Our reserve gave no farther way, and the enemy 

was placed under a cross-fire. The Capitan Pacta availed 

2U 



230 THE PRINCE OF NASSAU'S ORDER, 

himself of the only resource in his power ; he set every sai 1 to 
withdraw his force. Had he remained a half-hour longer, 
he would have been surrounded. Two of his vessels were 
burnt in this affair. The flotilla of the enemy was composed 
of fifty-seven vessels, and we chased into the middle of their 
fleet. The Rear- Admiral, who had directed the whole affair, 
gave all the credit of it to the Prince of Nassau. 

" An idea may be formed of the capacity of the Prince of 
Nassau from the following circumstance : — At the beginning 
of the action he requested the Rear- Admiral to bring forward 
to the support of the reserve only the vessels posted on the 
left wing, which consisted of one galley and a double cha- 
loupe. Besides the insufficiency of force, these vessels, had a 
very long way to make, and that against the wind. 

" The Turks remained quiet for some time after this. The 
Prince of Nassau, who had scarce spoken one word during 
the affair, save to make extravagant professions of regard 
for the Rear-Ad miral, now began to give himself airs. On 
the 13th June he addressed a writing of an extraordinary 
character to the Rear- Admiral, the object of which appeared 
to be, that an advance should be made of three verstes 
nearer the enemy, who had taken post under the batteries of 
Oczakow. The Rear- Admiral, who could perceive no advan- 
tage to the service in such a movement, refused his concur- 
rence. Had he agreed, the movement would have been fatal 
to Russia, as will be seen by what follows. 

"By the 16th June the patience of the Capitan Pacha was 
exhausted. He brought from his grand fleet, without Kin- 
bourn, two thousand picked men, to reinforce the body under 
the walls of Oczahow ; and being strengthened still farther 
by the troops of the garrison, he advanced with his whole 
fleet and flotilla, and with a fair wind, into the Liman, to 
attack and board us. The ship, which bore one of the Ad- 
miral's flags, steered right towards the Wolodimer from the 
commencement of the movement. When within three verstes 



COUNCIL OF WAR. 231 

of us, or little more, this ship got aground, and all the vessels 
which accompanied it immediately dropt anchor. It was 
then about two in the afternoon. 

" The Rear- Admiral summoned a council of war to con- 
sult on what should be done. He addressed the council, at 
which were present all the commanders of the squadron and 
the flotilla, and concluded by telling them, ' that they must 
make up their minds to conquer or die for the country.' 

" The wind, which was rather fresh, being against us, the 
only thing proposed by the Rear-Admiral that was found 
practicable, was to draw up our force in an obtuse angle, by 
bringing forward the right of the lirfe upon the centre.* This 
movement was completed before midnight. The wind had 
shifted to N.N.E. ; and at break of day the Rear-Admiral 
made signal, and the whole squadron immediately set sail to 
commence the attack on the Turks. 

" The Turks got into confusion the instant this manoeuvre 
was perceived. They raised their anchors or cut their cables 
in the greatest precipitation, and not the shadow of discipline 
remained in their fleet. Our squadron advanced in line of 
battle with a striking and formidable appearance, so that the 
Turks knew not how weak it really was. As our flotilla had 
been very slow in weighing anchor, the Rear-Admiral was 
obliged to make the squadron halt twice to await it. At 
leng°th, the flotilla being always last, the squadron opened fire 
on the enemy, of whom the person second in command, who 
had flown about like a fool, quickly ran his ship on a sand- 
bank on the south of the Liman. There was no longer hope 
for him; from the mome nt he grounded he was ours. The 

* " The plan of the Capitan Pacha was to bear down under full sail on the ves- 
sels of our flotilla, and runthem to the bottom by the shock of the encounter of 
his large ships. He also proposed to burn our squadron by throwing in fire- 
balls (grappins), and setting fire to certain trading vessels which he had pre- 
pared as fire-ships. He had reason to calculate on success, had he not been 
thwarted by a circumstance which no man could have foreseen. '- Vote by 
Paul Jones. 






232 CAPTURE OF A TURKISH SHIP. 




enemy still kept flying about, and always in the greatest dis- 
order. The Rear- Admiral made his ship (the Wolodimer) be 
steered to within pistol-shot of the vessel of the Capitan 
Pacha, but the latter again ran aground upon a sand-bank ; 
and a few minutes afterwards the Brigadier Alexiano gave 
orders in the Russian language, and unknown to the Rear- 
Admiral, to drop the Wolodimer's anchor. It was pretended 
that there were but fifteen feet of water a little way 'in ad- 
vance of the ship, which was not true. A considerable time 
before this the squadron had been taken on the right flank by 
the Turkish flotilla, drawn up on the shallows, approaching 
the bank to the east of Oczakow, and commanded by the 
Capitan Pacha himself. The flotilla annoyed the squadron 
considerably, by incessantly throwing in along our line both 
bombs and balls of great size. Wanting depth of water, our 
frigates could not advance far enough to dislodge them, and, 
besides, they found that their guns were too small. The Ca- 
pitan Pacha had struck down one of our frigates, named the 
Little Alexander, by a bomb, at the side of the Wolodimer, 
and at the very instant Brigadier Alexiano made the anchor 
be cast. Our flotilla still lagged behind, but it did at last 
advance. Having passed through the squadron in the great- 
est disorder and without the least appearance of plan, instead 
of pursuing the flying Turks, the flotilla swarmed round the 
Turkish ships which were aground like a hive of bees. 

" The Rear-Admiral commanded Brigadier Alexiano to 



THE TURKISH FLAG. 233 

get together some vessels of our flotilla to dislodge the Turk- 
ish flotilla. At the same moment the Rear-Admiral advanced 
in his boat towards the left wing, where the Prince of Nassau 
was with his body of reserve, employed to very little purpose, 
in firing on the Turkish vessels already aground. The Rear- 
Admiral entreated him to lead or send the reserve to act. 
against the Turkish flotilla upon our right flank, and informed 
him of the misfortune which had befallen the Little Alexan- 
der ; but M. de Nassau remained quietly behind his batteries, 
and made no movement to dislodge the flotilla of the enemy. 

" The Rear-Admiral then met Brigadier CorsacofF, to 
whom he gave orders similar to those he had given to M. 
Alexiano ; and these two officers having got together as 
many vessels as they could collect, assisted our frigates in 
dislodging and chasing the Turkish flotilla- even till under the 
walls of Oczakow. M. de CorsacofF was a brave and an 
intelligent man; he did not affect to have done anything 
wonderful. Alexiano was a man of limited talent and of 
questionable courage, but his vanity was excessive. He pre- 
tended to have hauled a battery to within pistol-shot of the 
enemy's flotilla ; but M. AkmatofF, who commanded that bat- 
tery, declared that neither he nor any one of our people ever 
were nearer the Turkish flotilla than half cannon-shot. 

" The Turkish fleet was now distant. The Prince of Nas- 
sau was told that the Admiral's flag, which had been dis- 
played on the vessel of the Capitan Pacha, was struck down, 
and he hastily advanced to claim it. The ship of the Capitan 
Pacha, like all the others of the band, leaned much to one 
side, and consequently could not fully avail itself of its guns. 
As the flag of the Capitan Pacha fell into the water from the 
top of the main-mast, having been struck down by a ball, it 
is not difficult to discover that the vessel which had fired this 
ball was in no danger of being touched by case-shot. The 
saporoses drew the flag from the water, and the Prince *>f 
Nassau, a long while afterwards, had the glory (which he 
20* 



234 THE BRANDCOLGLES. 

turned to good account,) of snatching it from their hands. 
The Rear-Admiral might have claimed at least the half of 
this flag, as he had his hands on it at the same moment with 
the Prince of Nassau ; but he regarded it as a thing of very 
little consequence. 

" Brandcougles* had been thrown into the two Turkish 
vessels, and they were burnt. Was this a good or a bad 
piece of service ? These two vessels were only ours from 




Burning of the Turkish vessels. 



the accident of having run aground, and because their crews 
had been left by their countrymen under the guns of our 
squadron. Wherefore did the flotilla interfere with them ? — 
ought it not rather to have pursued the flying Turks, who 
were not yet under the protection of the guns of Oczakow ? 
Our flotilla had received no injury, and had nothing to fear 
from the shallowness of the water. 

" Having first sounded, the Rear- Admiral made the squa- 
dron advance another verste, and took post in a right line 

* A note by Paul Jones describes these incendiary missiles as a kind of 
bomb-shells, perforated with holes, and filled inside with combustible mate 
rials. They were fired from a sort of pieces called Ll'ornes. 



JONES TAKING SOUNDINGS OFF OCZAKOW. 235 

barely out of shot of Oczakow, and in line with the farthest 
back of the Turkish ships that had been run aground and 
taken. Fire soon after broke out in this prize, which had been 
imprudently fired upon with brandcougles. 

" The fleet and flotilla of the Turks now drew up a line 
parallel to ours, and under the walls of Oczakow. 

" How imbecile does the human mind become under the 
influence of sudden panic ! The Rear- Admiral, an hour after 
the affair, advanced in his boat, and took soundings all along 
the Turkish line, opposite the walls of Oczakow, and within 
reach of case-shot, and not a single gun was fired upon him. 




Jones taking Soundings off Oczakow. 



" Previously to taking command of the squadron, the 
Rear-Admiral, as has been noticed, had gone to Kinbourn 
with the Chevalier Ribas, brigadier du jour, to the Prince- 
Marshal, to rconnoitre the position and force of the fleet and 
flotilla under the Capitan Pacha, and to examine the entrance 
of the Liman. They arrived at Kinbourn at the very time 
that the Capitan Pacha had detached twenty-one vessels of 
war from his fleet, and with that force entered the road of 
Oczakow, the wind not permitting him to enter the Liman, 



236 SHIPS AGROUND. 

where his flotilla and some transport ships were already 
stationed. The Rear-Admiral was so struck at finding the 
tongue of land at Kinbourn without any battery or block- fort, 
that he instantly spoke of it to the commandant, General 
Suwaroff. This tongue of land, from its position, commands 
the only passage by which large vessels can either enter or 
come out of the Liman. The fortress of Kinbourn being far too 
distant to be able to command this passage, the Rear- Admiral 
proposed to establish one or more strong batteries upon this 
strip of land, and M. de Ribas seconded the proposition. 
After considerable delay, General Suwaroflf was persuaded to 
establish a block-fort with heavy cannon upon this tongue or 
point of land, and a battery farther within ; but the Capitan 
Pacha had already got the twenty-one ships in question into 
the Liman. 

" To resume — On the night between the 17th and 18th of 
June, the Capitan Pacha attempted to bring the remains of 
his squadron, which had been defeated on the previous day, 
out of the Liman ; but the newly-erected block-fort and bat- 
tery fired on his ships, of which nine of the largest were 
forced aground upon the sand-bank which runs out from 
Oczakow, till within a little way of cannon-shot from the 
block-fort. 

" The block-fort and battery fired on the enemy's ships the 
whole night, and at day-break General Suwaroff sent to us, 
requesting that we should send vessels to take possession of 
those ships of the enemy which had got aground. The 
Rear-Admiral wished to send frigates ; but Brigadier Alexiano 
assured him that he would run the risk of losing them. The 
current there, he said, ' was like that of a mill-dam, and the 
bottom was so bad that anchors would not hold.' 

" It was, accordingly, resolved to proceed with the flotilla ; 
and Alexiano, who had his private reasons, set out with the 
Prince of Nassau. The flotilla went pell-mell, and without 
any sort of order or plan, upon the nine ships aground, and 




(237> 



DISTRESS OF THE TURKS. 



239 




Burning of the Turkish Fleet. 



fired brandcougles into them without mercy. It was in vain 
the wretched Turks made the sign of the cross, and begged 
for quarter on their knees ! Above three thousand of them 
were burnt with their ships. By some chance two of these 
vessels, the least and the largest, did not take fire ; the one 
was a corvette, very differently armed, carrying the battery 
and four pieces between decks. The other was a small 
brigantine, of French construction, armed with forty small 
guns. 

" Neither the Prince of Nassau nor Alexiano was to be 
seen at this time. They were together, and at some distance, 
during this frightful carnage ; and it was afterwards asked 



240 PRINCE POTEMKIN'S ARMY. 

of them if they had not, during this time, been at Kinbourn 1 
As the greatest confusion reigned among the vessels of the 
flotilla, though our loss was not great, there is no doubt that 
nart of it was owing to Russian bullets.* 



Flotilla Action. 



" The army of Prince Potemkin having come up on the 
27th June, the Prince of Nassau had orders to attack and 
destroy or capture, the Turkish flotilla which lay under the 
walls of Oczakow ; and the Rear- Admiral was commanded 
to give him every assistance that might be useful. In pur- 
suance of these orders, on the 1st of July, at one in the 
morning, the flotilla advanced. The Rear-Admiral had sent 
all the chaloupes and barcasses belonging to the squadron to 
haul out the vessels of the flotilla. The Prince-Marshal had 
taken the trouble to arrange the plan of attack himself, but 
his plan was not followed. 

" At day dawn, our flotilla having advanced within cannon- 
shot, opened fire upon the Turkish flotilla, and on the place. 
The current having carried several of our batteries and double 



* The species of warfare in which he was now daily engaged was new to 
the Anglo-American. The monstrous and wanton cruelties to which the 
Turks were subjected by the more barbarous and brutal Russians were ac- 
r.ordingly viewed by him with horror and disgust. 



BURNING OF A FRIGATE. 241 

chaloupes rather too far to leeward, the Rear- Admiral mada 
them be hauled up by the boats and barcasses of the squad- 
ron, and set the example himself with the chaloupe in which 
he was. The Turks set fire to a little firigate which they 
had prepared as a fire-ship, and placed at anchor to the 
N. E., of Fort Hassan Pacha. 



Burning of a Frigate. 

" At six in the morning, the Rear- Admiral went himself 
considerably in advance of the flotilla to seize five of the 
enemy's galleys which lay within case-shot of Fort Hassan. 
The position of these galleys, between the cross-fire of our 
flotilla on the one side, and that of Fort Hassan, the Turkish 
flotilla, and Oczakow on the other, rendered this a very dan- 
gerous enterprise. The Rear-Admiral boarded the galley 
which lay farthest out, and made it be hauled in a little way 
by Lieutenant Leff Fabrician. He afterwards boarded the 
galley of the Capitan Pacha, which lay considerably nearer 
the Fort. From unskilfulness, and excess of zeal, a young 
officer cut the cable of this galley without waiting the orders 
of the Rear-Admiral, and before the boats could be got in 
order to haul it out, the wind drifted the galley towards tne 
shore, and still nearer to the Fort. The Rear-Admiral made 
the galley be lightened by throwing many things overboard 
After much search for ropes that might stretch to the wreck 
21 



242 BURNING OF THE CAPITAN PACHA'S GALLEY, 
of the burnt frigate, and by fastening the galley there, keep i*. 
afloat, the plan failed from the ropes not being long enough. 
The Rear-Admiral was very unwilling to yield to the obsti- 
nate opposition of the Turks, who fired upon him from all 
their bastions and from their flotilla, and he despatched Lieu- 
tenant Fox to the Wolodimer, to fetch an anchor and cable 
This was a certain means of securing his object; and in 
waiting the return of the lieutenant, he left the galley with 
his people, and assisted in the flotilla's advance. Before (he 
return of Lieutenant Fox, he had, however, the mortification 
to see fire break out in the galley of the Capitan Pacha. 
He at first believed that the slaves chained on board had found 
means to escape, and had set fire to the vessel ; but he had 
afterwards positive proof that Brigadier Alexiano being in a 
boat at the time with the Prince of Nassau, on the outside of 
the flotilla, and being aware of the intention of the Rear- Ad- 
miral, swore that it should not succeed, and sent "a Greek 
canoe to set fire to the galley !* The three other Turkish gal- 
leys were at once run down and burnt by brandcougles. 
There were also a two-masted ship and a large bomb-vessel 
burnt near Fort Hassan Pacha. This includes all that was 
taken or destroyed by water, save fifty-two prisoners taken 
by the Rear- Admiral in the two galleys. The wretched 
beings, who were chained in the galley of the Capitan Pacha, 
perished there in the flames 1 

" The Prince-Marshal having made an important diversion 
on the land-side, it is to be regretted that advantage was not 
taken of this movement to seize the remainder of the enemy's 
flotilla. But our flotilla never came up within reach of grape- 
shot." 

* The attestation of a Russian officer to this singular fact is among- the 
Pieces Justificatives appended to the Journal ; and the original of that attes- 
tation, written in French, and subscribed BilicrofF, officer of the guard, and 
dated at Kinbourn the 26th October, 1788, remains among Jones's papers. 



VERIFICATION OF THE JOURNAL. 24„ 





Burning of the Capitan Pacha's Galley. 

The above, extracts from the Rear- Admiral's Journal are 
verified in the following manner : — " These extracts have been 
translated by me into the Russian language, and read before 
the commanders of the ship Wolodimer, Captain of the Second 
Rank, Zefaliano ; of the frigate Scoroi, Captain of the Second 
Rank, Aboljanin ; of the frigate Nicolai, Captain Lieutenant 
DanilofF; of the frigate Taheuroc, Lieutenant Makinin ; of 
the frigate the Little Alexander, Lieutenant Savitzsky ; and 
they have found nothing in them contrary to truth. 

" On board the Wolodimer, before Oczakow, the 28th 
October, 1788. 

' Paul Denetreffsky, Honorary Counsellor of the College for 
Foreign affairs, and by special orders of her Imperial 
Majesty of all the Russias, Secretary to Rear-Admira» 
and Chevalier Paul Jones " 



244 DEATH OF ALEXIANO. 

Addition of Rear-Admiral Jones to the preceeding Journal. 
Translated from the French of the MS. volume, prepared 
for publication by himself 

" The moment the ships began to withdraw from Oczakow, 
the Prince of Nassau and Brigadier Alexiano hurried straight 
to the head-quarters of the Prince-Marshal, to relate the deeds 
which they pretended they had performed. In a few minutes 
after the flotilla began to retire, the rain fell in torrents, of 
which Nassau and Alexiano received their own share before 
reaching head-quarters. 

" Two days afterwards, Brigadier Alexiano returned on 
board the Wolodimer, having caught a malignant fever, of 
which he died on the 8th July. The Prince of Nassau, who 
nad made use of him in caballing against me, God knows for 
what, neither visited him in his sickness, nor assisted at his 
funeral. At first it was given out, that the service must sus- 
tain the loss of every Greek in it on account of his death ; but 
I soon experienced the reverse. Not one asked to be dismissed ; 
they remained under my command the same as the Russians, 
and were better pleased than before. On the day preceding 
the death of Alexiano, he had received intelligence of having 
been promoted two grades ; and that her Majesty had bes- 
towed on him a fine estate, and peasants, in White Russia. 
"At the same time the Prince of Nassau had received a very 
valuable estate, with three or four thousand peasants, also in 
White Russia, and the Military Order of St. George, of the 
Second Class. Her Majesty likewise gave him liberty to hoist 
the flag of Vice Admiral on the taking of Oczakow, to which 
event it was apparently believed he had greatly contributed. 
I received the order of St. Anne, an honour with which I am 
highly flattered, and with which I could have been perfectly 
satisfied, had others been recompensed only in the same pro- 
portion, and according to the merit of their services. All the 
officers of the flotilla received a step of promotion and the 



VISIT OF PRINCE POTEMKIN. 245 

gratuity of a year's pay. The greater part of them also ob- 
tained the Order of St. George, of the Last Class. Only two 
of these officers had been bred to the sea ; all the others were 
ignorant of navel affairs. The officers of the squadron under 
my command were almost wholly marine officers. They 
had done their duty well when opposed to the enemy ; but 
they obtained no promotion, no mark of distinction, no pecu- 
niary reward. My mortification was excessive. 

" My officers at this time gave me a very gratifying proof 
of their attachment. On promising that I would demand jus- 
tice for them from the Prince-Marshal at the close of the 
campaign, they stifled their vexation, and made no complaint. 

" It ought to have been mentioned in the proper place, that 
three days after our success in the Liman, Prince Potemkin 
arrived at Kinbourn, from whence he came on board the 
Wolodimer to make me a visit. He was accompanied by 
General Count de Brandisky of Poland, the Prince de Repuin, 
the Prince de Ligne, General de Samoilow, and several other 
officers. His Highness did me the honour to remain to dinner ; 
and as he knew that an altercation had taken place between 
the Prince of Nassau and myself on the morning of the 18th 
of June, he had the goodness to employ the Prince de Ligne, 
and M. Littlepage, Chamberlain to the King of Poland, to per- 
suade the Prince of Nassau to make me an apology. I ac- 
cepted it with sincere pleasure. We embraced in presence of 
this honourable company, and I believed him as sincere as 
myself. 

"The Prince-Marshal charged me at this time to make 
arrangements for raising the cannon, anchors, and other 
stores belonging to the enemy's ships which had been burnt, 
without loss of time, and T sent off a transport ship with 
officers and men on this duty. 

" His Highness the Prince-Marshal now made his troops 
advance. They passed the Bog, and appeared in sight of us, 
on the banks of the Liman, on the 27th of June ; and next 
21 * 



246 ALEXIANO. 

morning the Capitan Pacha made his grand fleet, which had 
always remained at anchor twenty or thirty verstes without 
Kinbourn, weigh anchor, and directed his course towards the 
entrance of the Danube, carrying three Admiral's flags, and 
followed by all the vessels that had escaped us in the Liman. 
During the whole time that we were exposed to having a 
serious affair with the Turks, Brigadier Alexiano had care- 
fully kept a Greek felucca of eighteen oars alongside the 
Wolodimer. This felucca was better built for sailing than 
any of the other chaloupes or rowing vessels belonging to 
the whole squadron, so that he had at all times the means of 
saving himself in case of any disastrous event. Even the 
Prince of Nassau, since his retreat on the 6th of June, was 
never seen in any vessel of the flotilla, but always in a cha-.. 
loupe, which had been built for the especial use of her Impe- 
rial Majesty on her late voyage. For myself, I took no such 
precautions. 1 saw that I must conquer or die. For me 
there was no retreat. The instant that Alexiano saw the 
troops appear, he despatched his felucca to inform the 
Prince-Marshal that it was he, in his zeal for the service, 
who had employed people to save the effects of the burnt 
prizes. Nothing could be less true. He had not taken the 
smallest concern in the matter. But this shows the character 
of the man. Next day I was informed that the transport ship 
I had employed on this service was already too heavily laden, 
and made a great deal of water. As the wind was fair for 
Glauboca, I gave orders that she should immediately go 
thither to unload. Some hours after the departure of the 
transport, Brigadier Alexiano returned from Kinbourn, where 
he had dined, and said several impertinent things to me on 
the subject of the transport. He went afterwards to head- 
quarters to complain of me to the Prince-Marshal. In conse- 
quence of this complaint I received a letter from his brigadier 
du jour, the Chevalier Ribas, which, among other things, 
mentioned that the Prince-Marshal was " singularly severe 



IMPERTINENCE OF ALEXIANO. 24? 

and strict in all that related to the orders he gave." I replied, 
that I was not afraid of the severity of the Prince-Marshal, 
as I had done nothing save my duty, in pursuance of his own 
orders.* Next day I paid a visit to the Prince of Nassau. 
I imagined I should be welcomed with open arms; but he 
attacked me about the transport-ship, which belonged, he 
said, to his flotilla. I replied, that I had been charged with 
this duty by the Prince-Marshal; that all the ships of war 
and transports belonged to her Imperial Majesty ; and that 
the. vessel in question, being unemployed at the time when I 
took it, I could not perceive the smallest cause of complaint. 
He was beside himself with anger ; but, as the good of the 
service no longer required our combined operations, I thought 
this quarrel too childish to give myself uneasiness about it. 
I took leave of him, begging him to reflect, that I had given 
him no cause of displeasure. I did not wish to come to a 
rupture with him; but, on the 1st of July, seeing the day 
dawn, and that the flotilla was still far too distant to make 
the necessary attack, meeting him in his chaloupe, I asked 
'If he did not think it time to begin the attack? — ' Is it of 
me you thus inquire V he replied ; ' I have nothing to say to 
you on the subject.' After a reply so uncivil, and so pub- 
licly made, it was impossible I could have any farther inter- 
course with the Prince of Nassau. 

" On the 18th June, in giving an account to the Prince- 
Marshal of the fate of the nine vessels run aground in coming 
out of the Liman, upon the shallows opposite the battery and 
block-fort on the tongue of land of Kinbourn, I took the liberty 
to propose to him to get the Wolodimer, which had port-holes 
for seventy pieces of cannon, and the large frigate Alexander, 
which might have carried fifty pieces, completely armed, that 

* After this affair, Jones seems to have completely lost all self-command. 
He had no longer any hope of conciliating the Prince of Nassau, and accord- 
ingly henceforth waged against him a determined and not very generous 
nostility. 



i48 FLEET ACTION. 

at the first opportunity the squadron of Cherson might join 
that of Sevastopole ; but his Highness gave no orders for this 
purpose till the month of September ; and the Admiralty was 
so slow in acting, that the vessels were not equipped by the 
18th October, when I was recalled to St. Petersburgh by an 
order from her Imperial Majesty. 




Action of the 28th of June. 

" The fleet of the Capitan Pacha having sailed on the 28th 
of June, had a rencounter with that of Sevastopole, which 
had come out some days before ; but the Turkish fleet being 
much stronger than that of Russia, the latter fled, and had 
the good fortune to get back to Sevastopole without loss, 
having no more than six or seven men killed and wounded, 
which shows that the affair was neither close nor warm. 

" After the affair of the 18th of June, the greater part of 
our flotilla remained several days at anchor between Kinbourn 
and the block-fort upon the tongue of land. It is surprising 
that the Russian seamen and pilots could be so profoundly 
ignorant respecting the anchorage, currents, and depth of the 
Liman, and, above all, of the channel and the road between 
Oczakow and Beresane. At first not a single commander in 
he flotilla durst venture to cast an anchor. 
" Being at Kinbourn on the 28th June, General SuwaroflT 



CAPTURE OF THE CHALOUPES. 249 

spoke to me of the unpleasant circumstance of not being able 
to cut off the communication between Oczakow and Beresane. 
Having sounded myself, I informed him that this was quite 
as practicable as it was useful to the service, and I would 
place the frigates there instantly if he would only require me 
to do so. He did not hesitate, and the same day I placed 
three frigates there. M. Alexiano did all he could to prevent 
me ; and when he saw the frigates set off, prophesied that I 
would never see them return. He carried his intrigues so tar, 
that the Prince-Marshal wrote me a warning letter on the 
29th, and on the 1st July a peremptory order to withdraw 
them. During the short time they were there they took two 
Turkish armed chaloupes and a batteau laden with powder 
and shot ; and cut off the enemy's communination between 
Oczakow and Beresane. 




Capture of the Turkish Chaloupes. 



" The Prince-Marshal had not been satisfied with the con- 
duct of the flotilla in the affair of attacking Oczakow on tne 
1st. July, which was conducted in a very irregular manner, 
and at too great a distance. The most advanced charge was 



250 JONES AND M. RIBAS. 

that of the battery commanded by M. Akmatoff, who was 
never less than 900 toises distant from the enemy. 

" On the 10th of July the Prince-Marshal sent the Prince 
of Nassau to Sevastopole, to learn if the squadron had been 
much damaged in the rencounter with the Turkish fleet. 
Immediately after the departure of the Prince of Nassau, the 
Prince-Marshal gave the Chevalier Ribas the command of 
the flotilla, with orders to go to Kinbourn, to receive on board 
the troops he destined to make a descent on the island of 
Beresane. At the same time he ordered me to establish a 
line of blockade between that island and Oczakow. I sta- 
tioned five frigates, carrying eighteen-pounders, in the roads 
for this purpose. 

" On the 14th I was ordered to inspect the entrance of the 
Liman. I immediately went (o Kinbourn to have an under- 
standing with General Suvvaroff and the Brigadier de Ribas. 
Though the Brigadier had been incessantly occupied since the 
departure of the Prince of Nassau in bringing the crews of the 
flotilla to some sort of order, he had not yet completed this 
task. So great was the confusion that reigned, that he could 
not find in any vessel five- soldiers belonging to the same com- 
pany ; and the officers knew not where to look for their men. 
This retarded the embarkation of the troops destined for the 
descent on Beresane till the 16th. The Prince-Marshal was 
so much displeased with this delay, that on the 17th he gave 
orders to land the troops, that they might join his army before 
Oczakow, and that the flotilla should again pass into the Li- 
man, as well as the frigates I had posted for the blockade. 

"From the commencement of the projected expedition 
against Beresane, M. Ribas had requested me to conduct the 
flotilla and the descent of the troops. Though a man of much 
talent, he had not the misplaced conceit of some persons who 
readily take upon them things far beyond their capacity. I 
b old him, ' He wull knew I ought to have commanded the flotilla 
as well as the squadron, from the beginning of the campaign. 



THE PRINCE'S PROPOSAL. 251 

but lhat my gratitude for the gracious reception accorded me 
by her Imperial Majesty, together with the very delicate state 
in which 1 had found affairs, had induced me to sacrifice my 
feelings, and even greatly to hazard my reputation for the 
good of the empire ; that I could never so far humble myself 
as to request the command of the flotilla, but if it were given 
me by the Prince-Marshal, I would do my best to make the 
most of it possible.' 

" On the afternoon of the 17th the Prince-Marshal fairly 
proposed to give me the command of the flotilla. His High- 
ness informed me his intention was to have Oczakow attacked 
a second time. I replied, that I was disposed to execute with 
zeal whatever he might think proper for. the good of the ser- 
vice ; but that to attack with advantage it was necessary to 
come to close quarters, and to advance in better order than on 
the 1st July. He was of the same opinion, and requested me 
to come ashore next day, that we might concert together the 
plan of attack. 

" I did not fail to comply with the orders of the Prince- 
Marshal, but his Highness spoke no more of the flotilla. I 
remained to dinner and supper, and afterwards returned on 
board of my ship. 

" The Prince of Nassau having returned some days before, 
had intrigued with the Prince de Ligne ; and the Prince- 
Marshal restored him to the command of the flotilla. 

•' On the 18th June I had been ordered to despatch the five 
frigates which had returned into the Liman, to be refitted at 
Glouboca, en hater ie. I sent them off at day-break on the 
19th, having drawn the greater part of their crews from the 
gun-boats and bomb-vessels which the Prince-Marshal had 
placed under my command. On the 20th I received twenty- 
one gun-boats, each carrying a single piece, from eighteen 
to thirty-two pounders ; and five bomb- vessels, each carry- 
ing a mortar, of which four were of three poods, and one o* 



252 JONES CUTS OUT A TURKISH VESSEL, 

five poods* The same day the Prince-Marshal having 
established his head-quarters to the right of his army upon 
the shores of the Black Sea, (he had hitherto been on the 
shores of the Liman, on the left wing,) pointed out to me 
two of the enemy's gun-boats, stationed close by the fort of 
Hassan Pacha, and the Turkish lines on the side of Beresane. 
He was persuaded that they would attempt to come out dur- 
ing the night with despatches, and inquired of me if it were 
not possible to capture them. As his Highness appeared to 
attach gre^t importance to this service, I undertook it. 

" I returned on board the Wolodkner, from whence, at 
eight in the evening, I set off with five armed chaloupes ] 
made five gun-boats- follow, as a measure of precaution in 
case the Turks had attempted to make a sortie, as their 
chaloupes sailed much faster than ours. 

" I found one of the Turkish gun-boats aground, hauled up, 
and almost dry on the sands adjoining the battery, and on an 
intrenchment the enemy had cast up on the water's edge. It 
was impossible to get it afloat under the terrible fire which 
we sustained from all the lines and batteries on the shore. 
The other gun-boat lay hard by the fort of Hassan Pacha, to 
the south. Lieutenant Edwards boarded this vessel, and cut 
her cables ; but having had several of his men wounded, and 
being deserted by one of the chaloupes, he was obliged to 
give up the attempt, lest he should be left by the other chaloupe 
also. During this time I had made some efforts to get the 
other Turkish boat afloat. I now rowed quickly to the as- 
sistance of Mr. Edwards, but (he night being dark, he was 
already out of sight. I boarded the vessel in which he had 
been. I had several men wounded around me ; but, in defi- 
ance of the enemy, I hauled the vessel out, and stationed it 
right opposite the head-quarters of the Prince-Marshal. 

•' On the 21st, at daybreak, I sailed with the Wolodimer. 

• A pood, or poud, is a Russian weight, equal to 36 lbs. English weight. 



THE FLEET SAILS. 



258 




Jones cutting out a Turkish vessel. 



lollowed by all the vessels of the squadron that yet remained 
with me, and twenty-five armed boats and bomb-vessels that 
had been placed under my command. The object of this 
movement was again to blockade Oczakow by sea, and to 
cut off the communication between that place and Beresane. 
To accomplish this object, I stationed the Wolodimer and the 
Alexander to blockade the channel at the entrance of the 
Liman, and I continued the same line of blockade into the 
road, by placing the smaller vessels there. As the bomb- 
vessels and gun-boats had not water-casks, the Prince-Mar- 
shal, w T ho wished to see these craft opposite his head-quarters 
made wells be dug on shore for the accommodation of the 
crews ; and on the 24th ordered my officer du jour to have 
three vessels stationed near the shore. I knew nothing of 
22 



254 JONES SAVES THE BOATS, 

this change, for I had placed them the previous night, in line, 
and far enough oft' to be in safety. On the 25th the wind 
was from the south, but was not violent. After dinner I went 
to head-quarters to make a visit to the Prince-Marshal, ana 
found, to my great astonishment, that half the boats were 
cast ashore, and the other half in the greatest danger. I set 
to work instantly, with my chaloupe, to haul off, and bring 
to anchor all the vessels possible; and by means of anchors 
and cables, for which I sent to the squadron, we saved them 
all. except six gun-boats, which went to pieces, and filled with 
sand. On the 26th the Prince-Marshal wrote me by his 
Brigadier du jour, requiring to know, since I was master of 
the vessels saved, what I meant to do with them ? I placed 
them near the tongue of land of Kinbourn, where they had 
a sheltered haven, and also wells for the accommodation of 
the men. They sustained no farther injury during the time 
they remained under my command. After this, two chaloupes 
or small cutters were placed under my orders, of which each 
carried two licornes, forty-eight pounders, in the fore-paii, 
and six falconets on the sides. Shortly afterwards I got tw 7 c 
larger cutters, carrying each two mortars, of five poods. 

" On the 31st July, the Capitan Pacha again made his ap- 
pearance with his fleet, followed by several vessels which he 
had not when he went off. His advanced guard, composed 
of his frigates, bomb-vessels, and small craft, cast anchor 
near Beresane, whilst his large squadron of ships of the line 
resumed their old position. The Prince-Marshal ordered me 
to bring back my small vessels to assist in blocking up the 
passage of the Liman ; and the Prince of Nassau was ordered 
to block up the road with his flotilla, and thus cut ofi" the 
communication of the Turkish small vessels by the shallows 
to the south of Fort Hassan Pacha. 

" The Prince of Nassau hoisted a Vice-Admiral's flag, on 
one of the galleys in coming out of the Liman, and that gal- 
ley having passed under the stern of the Wolodimer on the 



THE CAPITAN PACHA. 255 

1st of August, he assumed that I ought to have saluted him 
as Vice-Admiral." 

[The Rear- Admiral here enumerates six different special 
reasons for not saluting the said flag ; and we fear somewhat 
tediously, for which reason we spare the reader this concate- 
nation ; the only important fact being, that the Prince of 
Nassau endeavoured to make the Court of Russia believe 
that the denial of this piece of courtesy was the only subject. 
of dispute between himself and Paul Jones. We again re- 
sume the narrative.] 




The Capitan Pacha Bounding. 



" The Capitan Pacha came out from day to day, to sound 
and reconnoitre, in his kirlangitz, which sailed like the wind, 
and always displayed an Admiral's flag. As the block-fort 
and the battery on the tongue of land at Kinbourn were only 
constructed of bags of sand, ana were neither protected by 
ditch nor palisade, I was afraid that the Capitan Pacha 
might try to carry them by a sudden descent, which he 
could have done by landing five hundred men. 



256 THE COMMAND OFFERED TO JONES. 

Y General SuwarofT had been dangerously wounded in a 
sortie made by the garrison of Oczakow, and had come to 
Kinbourn. I convinced him that the block-fort and battery 
were menaced, and as he had a greater quantity of chevaux 
de-frize than he required, I suggested that he should employ 
what was superfluous in surrounding the block-fort and bat- 
tery. The general gave orders accordingly, and I ranged 
all my gun-boats and bomb-vessels right by the strip of 
ground between the block-fort and the battery. The sand 
served them as a parapet, so that there was a line of fire 
continued from the point on to the battery. The small craft 
were, besides, always ready to change their position at the 
first movement of the enemy, and I placed the squadron so 
advantageously as to communicate with the block-fort and 
the battery, without confining their fire, and to keep back 
the enemy by a cross-fire, on entering the channel of the 
Liman ; so that, though we were very weak compared with 
the Turkish fleet, the Capitan Pacha never either attempted 
to make a descent, or to force the passage of the entrance of 
the Liman. 

" The Prince-Marshal having ordered Rear Admiral Wog- 
nowitch to sail from Sevastopole with the fleet under his 
command, and that officer having raised obstacles because 
his force was not, he conceived, powerful enough to attack 
that under the command of the Capitan Pacha, his Highness 
sent me a letter, written by his chief secretary, Brigadier 
Popoff, on the 19th August (old style,) proposing that I should 
go to Sevastopole to take command of the fleet. It may be 
remembered that I was brought to Russia to command all 
the naval force in the Black Sea, consequently this proposi- 
tion did not surprise me. Had the Prince-Marshal ordered 
me to go, I would have proceeded immediately, but I could 
not seem as if I sought to be sent. In the first place, the 
naval signals used in that fleet were imperfect and very 
limited 2cUy, My naval signals had not yet been translated 



CAPTURE OF THE LODKA. 257 

into the Russian language, as no attention had been given to 
my request for a person capable of translating them. Sdly, I 
was acquainted with no one in the fleet, and I was aware 
that the Prince-Marshal wished that it should come out the 
very day after my arrival at Sevastopole. 4thly, The fleet 
had been compelled to fly before that of the Capitan Pacha, 
at a time when he had two thousand fewer good seamen. 
5thhj, The fleet at Sevastopole was much as before, but that 
of the Capitan Pacha was stronger in craft, and had all the 
men replaced that had been lost in the affair of the Liman. 
Gthly, I had just received preparatory orders from the Prince- 
Marshal to attack Fort Hassan Pacha ; and I hoped to show 
him the difference between my fashion of attack and that of 
the 1st of July. I replied, in answer to his letter, that being 
entirely devoted to the good of the state, his highness would 
find me eager to fulfil his orders. It was said, that some days 
afterwards the Prince-Marshal sent positive orders to Admi- 
ral Wognowitch to come out, but that he always found 
neans for not coming to close quarters with the Capitan 
Pacha. 




Capture of the Lodka. 



" On the 30th August the Turks took a small lodka, freighted 
with water-melons, belonging to the merchants of Kinbourn 
22* 



258 GUN-BOAT OFFICER. 

In coming down the Liman the people on board had been 
foolish enough to pass too close to Oczakow. 

" To 'punish the Turks' for this, the Prince of Nassau, at 
evening, made his flotilla advance to assault Oczakow ! 

" I sent my secretary to head-quarters, and in the mean- 
while assembled the commanders of divisions of my gun- 
boats, and bomb-vessels, and ordered them to bring forward 
their divisions, and form in line of battle between the squad- 
ron and Oczakow, ready to attack the Fort of Hassan Pacha 
the moment orders should arrive. 

" Upon the return of the Capitan Pacha, M. Littlepage, 
Chamberlain to the King of Poland, being then with the 
Prince-Marshal, had solicited and obtained leave to command 
a division of my gun-boats. 

" Night being come on, the chiefs of division wishing to 
bring forward their boats, found that thirteen of them had 
quitted their posts, against the most positive orders to make 
no movement without their commanders of division. This 
movement had been occasioned by the rashness of a Greek 
lieutenant belonging to the division of M. Littlepage. The 
boat of this officer had fired eight shots against the place, 
and another boat six shots, but no one else had fired. As this 
lieutenant was the most to blame, I deprived him of his com- 
mand, and sent him to head-quarters, which was required by 
the Prince-Marshal. 

" The Prince of Nassau, who had very idly wasted a great 
deal of ammunition, pretended that my boats had prevented 
him from taking the whole Turkish flotilla ! 

" The Greek lieutenant whom I had disgraced, instead 
of being punished, was promoted to the command of a double 
chaioupe, heavily armed. M. Littlepage gave a particular 
account of the whole affair in a letter to the Grand General 
of Poland. 

"A few days after this, the Prince-Marshal sent Rear- Ad- 
miral Mordwinoff on board the Wolodimer, to assemble all 



COUNCIL HELD. 259 

the captains and master pilots of the squadron to hold a coun- 
cil on the means of effecting a junction between the squadron 
of Cherson and the fleet of Sevastopole. It has been said that 
the Prince-Marshal had earnestly entreated this officer to 
take the affair upon himself, and that he positively declined it. 
I can say nothing on this head ; I only know that it was a 
delicate step in relation to me, to send another officer on 
board my ship to hold a council ; and, above all, without 
having apprised me either by speech or writing. If I had 
been stickling, I would have put this officer under arrest, as 
he could show no authority nor precedent for holding a 
council where I commanded. But as I was influenced by the 
good of the service above every personal cnnsideration, I re- 
ceived Admiral Mordwinoff most amicably, and after dinner 
assembled the officers for the necessary consultation. Many 
difficulties presented themselves to their minds against the pro- 
posed junction; but as it was known that the Prince-Marshal 
was determined on the measure, it was agreed that it could 
not be effected but at Hagdge-bay, upon the coast, between 
Beresane. and the Danube, at the distance of fifty verstes* 
from the point of Kinbourn. I raised no obstacle. I only 
observed, that since it was pressingly necessary to beat the 
advanced guard of the enemy before we Could effect the pro- 
posed junction, it was indispensable to station the squadron 
previously in the road of Oczakow, and to sail from thence 
with the wind from N. to N.N.W., to avoid being attacked on 
the way by the grand fleet of the Turks, and also to keep to 
the leeward till the junction was effected. 

" It was only a few days previously that preparations had 
been begun to complete the arming of the Wolodimer and 
Alexander. 

" During this time her Imperial Majesty had sent twenty- 
four gold swords to head-quarters, to be distributed among 
the officers on account of the battle of the Liman. The 

* A verste is equal to 3500 English feet. 



260 HEAVY ARMAMENTS. 

Prince-Marshal himself received a gold sword, enriched with 
diamonds and emeralds ; and the Prince of Nassau got one 
ornamented with a row of diamonds. There were a number 
of silver medals sent at the same time to be distributed among 
the soldiers and seamen. The swords had not yet been dis- 
tributed, but the medals were all given to the men of the flo- 
tilla, and not one to any man in the squadron. It is usual to 
give subalterns the more merit the more they are exposed to 
personal danger. The crew T s of the squadron had often hauled 
the flotilla totally uncovered, and exposed to the fire of the 
enemy, whilst the people of the flotilla were screened by 
parapets made of bags of wool, by which the vessels were 
surrounded. 

" On the 18th September I received a secret order from the 
Prince-Marshal to attack the advanced-guard of the enemy, 
anchored under Beresane. His Highness proposed to make 
the attack with the five frigates which had been sent to 
Glouboca to be mounted as batteries ; and the frigates were 
to be supported by all the other vessels of the squadron, save 
the Wolodimer and the Alexander, the arming of which went 
on very slowly on account of difficulties on the part of the 
Admiralty. Two of the frigates, the Scoroi and the Boris- 
thenes, had already rejoined the squadron. Before the equip- 
ments of those frigates were altered, they carried more guns 
than are ever put, either by the French or English, into ships 
of the same. kind. The Scoroi, for example, carried forty 
guns, and in England they would not have put more than 
thirty-two into her. She now carried sixteen thirty-six 
pounders, and four licornes, eigh teen-pounders." 

[Here follows a detailed account of the armament of this 
frigate, and the Rear- Admiral's opinion of the best way of 
arming ships, which he appears himself to think not much to 
the point, for he returns to the narrative of the campaign by 
saying as much.] 

" The five frigates, of which I have perhaps spoken too much. 



PLAN OF ATTACK. 261 

appeared to me very fit to place behind a stoccado, or bar. 
But 1 never would make choice of ships of this kind for the 
sea-service. The first broadside is all that is to be feared from 
them. 

" I replied in writing to the proposition of the Prince-Mar- 
shal for attacking the advanced guard of the Turks near Bere- 
sane, and afterwards made a plan of attack be drawn out for 
his inspection. He was much pleased with it. As it was neces- 
sary to take advantage of a northerly wind to effect the en- 
terprise, I proposed to the Prince-Marshal to place the frigates 
in the road as soon as they arrived from Glouboca, to serve, 
while waiting the attack on the line, as a permament outer 
blockade between Oczakow and the enemy. His Highness 
said it was not yet time for this, and ordered me to place them 
in a line with the other vessels of my squadron, so as to make 
an imposing figure in the channel of the Liman. 

" In the end of the month, the Turkish fleet set sail in the 
night followed by all the vessels that had lain under Beresane : 
nor did we perceive it till late the next morning. The Capi- 
tan Pacha returned in about thirty-six hours, and resumed the 
position he had left. The only difference was, that he brought 
in some additional small vessels, and that he considerably 
reinforced his advanced guard under Beresane. As our flo- 
tilla, which ought to have blockaded the road, and cut off the 
communication with the small vessels on that side, were only 
there occasionally, a3 if by caprice, it was quite natural for 
the Turks to profit by its absence, and go out and in when 
they found the way clear. 

" The flotilla being to leeward, between my squadron and 
Kinbourn, on the 8th October, the Capitan Pacha sent off in 
the evening three vessels of his advanced guard, which en- 
tered Oczakow unmolested, by an open passage. Our flotilla 
made no movement. I made in attempt to intercept the 
enemy's progress with my gun-boats, which I caused to be 
hauled to windward by the ship's boats of the squadron. 



262 ATTACK ON OCZAKOW. 

But the wind being high, they could not bring them to attack 
Our batteries nearest to Oczakow fired on the three Turkish 
vessels, but witjiout being able to arrest their progress. It 
was now dark ; and moreover, the distance between these 
batteries and the block-fort, on the one side of Kinbourn, 
being seven verstes, the land batteries never could have pre- 
vented either the entrance or exit of small vessels. 

" One of the Turkish ships had the folly to cast anchor in 
the shallows of Fort Hassan Pacha ; and at daybreak on the 
ninth, being within shot of our most advanced land-battery, 
was struck between wind and water, and run down ; the 
other two vessels got in without difficulty. I have already 
mentioned, that on the 18th of August I received an order to 
be in readiness to attack the fortress of Hassan Pacha with 
my bomb- vessels, and the chaloupes armed with licornes and 
mortars. I expected from day to day an order for action, 
and had in consequence bestowed much pains in training my 
men to the necessary evolutions ; but the final orders never 
arrived. 

" The Prince of Nassau having run down my plan of attack, 
it was set aside ; and by a new arrangement, which I was 
commanded to form with General Muller, Commander-in- 
chief of Artillery, I was destined to assault the entrenchment, 
and the Turkish battery on the shore of the road. 

" On the 9th of October the flotilla advanced from the shores 
of Kinbourn," and attacked Oczakow ; but this attack was 
conducted and ended in the very same manner as that of the 
30th August, save that a small vessel of the Turkish flotilla, 
which lay farther out than any of the others, ran aground on 
the shallows of Fort Hassan Pacha. 

"On the 10th of October I received another preparatory 
order ; and soon afterwards was ordered to give up all my 
gun-boats to the flotilla. Towards evening I went to head- 
quarters to ascertain what was to be done regarding these 
boats. The Prince-Marshal at this time told me he had the 







MP 



IB 



(2C3) 



L1EUTEN ANT E D\V ARDS. 



26* 




Flotilla Action. 



strongest desire to see pitched overboard a large piece of ar- 
tillery placed on the fore-part of the vessel of the Turkish flo- 
tilla that stood farthest out, and which had run aground. I 
imagined at the time that there was no other vessel run 
aground save the one in the road, at the distance of a verste 
from the fortress of Hassan Pacha; so I said the thing was 
quite easy ; for although the Turks should come up in force 
to defend the vessel, there would always be time to spike the 
piece of cannon. 

" It was night when I undertook this little enterprise. As 
I did not imagine the Prince-Marshal attached so much im 
portance to it as to wish that I should conduct it in person, 1 
confided it to Lieutanant Edwards, a brave and an intelligent 
man, whom I wished to requite for past services. On the 1st 
ot luly he had followed me throughout, and was a long time 
with me in the galley of the Capitan Pacha. He had followed 
23 



266 JSIGHT EXPEDITION, 

me on the night of the 20th of July, and had boarded, and cut 
the cable of the vessel which I took opposite the fortress of 
Hassan Pacha. He had assisted me some days aftei wards, 
when, by orders of the Prince-Marshal, we made trial of bom- 
barding the fort from one of the bomb-vessels ; from which 
service we had some difficulty in withdrawing, as the wind, 
which rose in a moment, kept us for a long while under the 
fire of the enemy's musketry, which wounded some of our 
men. 

" Mr. Edwards returned before daybreak, without having 
succeeded. He said there were a great many men in the 
ship, who fired on him, and that he durst not board her, he 
was so ill supported. I was vexed that, he had failed ; and 
in my report to the Prince-Marshal I said that I would- 
conduct the enterprise myself next night, if that would 
satisfy him. 

" The Prince-Marshal held me at my word ; but it was 
eleven at night when Mr. Edwards returned with the order. 
The wind, which was high, was quite against me, as well as 
a strong tide ; and I would have deferred the attempt, if I had 
not conceived my honour pledged. I was led to hope, that 
a f ter midnight the wind might fall, and the strength of the 
tide lessen, if it did not change. The night was very dark, 
and the rain fell in torrents. I waited till two o'clock, when 
the moon rose. I had with me five armed boats, and I cal- 
culated on being followed by four batteaux saporoses, and by 
one of the armed vessels I had taken from the Turks ; but it 
was impossible to haul them against the wind, and I was com- 
pelled to go on as I best could, with only my five boats. I 
have noticed that our flotilla had run down a small Turkish 
vessel in the shallows of the fortress of Hassan Pacha, but I 
did not perceive this till the moment after I had despatched 
Mr. Edwards to head-quarters, because the vessel lay so near 
the fortress, where the water is of little depth, that it had only 
sunk a foot or fifteen inches, and consequently appeared as if 



NIGHT EXPEDITION. 



267 




Jones's Night Expedition. 



still afloat. As the Prince-Marshal had only spoken to me 
of the farthest out of the Turkish flotilla, I now believed he 
meant the one nearest the fortress, in which idea I was con- 
firmed by Mr. Edwards, at his return from head-quarters, tell- 
ing me he had heard ashore that the vessel run down in the 
road had been visited, but that nothing had been found there. 
I rowed for the vessel nearest the fortress, which carried a 
large cannon in her bow ; but, after having fatigued my row- 
ers, I was vexed to see daylight appear, whilst I had still more 
than a verste to go before I could reach the vessel. I returned 
on board my own ship, to prevent a useless alarm, intending 
to renew the attempt next night. 

" Without waiting to receive my report, the Prince-Marshal 
sent me orders ' to abandon the enterprise, for he had entrusted 
t to other ships.' There was fine weather on the night be- 
tween the 12th and 13th, but the 'other ships' did nothing; 
and the Turks availed themselves of an open way to bring 



268 TURKISH VESSEL BURNT. 

out all their flotilla, which rejoined the ships of the advanced 
guard under Beresane. 

" Some days afterwards, a colonel of Cossacks boarded 
the vessel run down in the road, and set fire to it, for which 
he received public thanks. 




Burning of a Tur 



" On the 13th the Prince-Marshal wished to establish a per- 
manent line of blockade in the road, by placing my frigates 
there, and some other vessels. He wrote me a letter on this 
subject, which strongly affected me, and to which I replied 
next day, with perhaps rather too much freedom and warmth.* 

* This letter, taken in connexion with the circumstances which preceded it, 
was the ultimate cause of the dismissal of Paul Jones before the campaign 
ended. His recall to St. Petersburgh, under pretence of being employed in 
the North Sea, in name of the Empress, but really ordered by Potemkin, 
was a mere piece of jugglery to get rid of him, of which he was not even the 
dupe. The following is an extract of his letter, and a copy of Potemkin's 
Drder, which provoked it : — 

" Order to Rear- Admiral Chevalier Paul Jones. 
" As it is seen that the Capitan Pacha comes in his kirlangich from the 
grand fleet to the smaller vessels, and as before quitting this he may attempt 
sometumg, I request your Excellence, the Capitan Pacha having actually a 



QUARREL WITH POTEMKIN. 269 

This occasioned an interchange of letters, which was only 
terminated on the 18th by the arrival of Admiral Mordwinoff, 
to take command of the squadron and the flotilla ; for the 
Prince of Nassau had set off for Warsaw some days after his 
affair of the 9th, with which the Prince-Marshal had been 
much dissatisfied. I at the same time received orders from 
her Imperial Majesty to go to St. Petersburgh to be employed 
in the North Sea. Sweden had declared war against Russia 
at the commencement of the campaign, and Admiral Greig, 

greater number of vessels, to hold yourself in readiness to receive him 

courageously, and drive him back. I require that this be done without loss 

of time ; if not, you will be made answerable for every neglect. 

" Prince Potemkin TauriciexN. 
•« 13th October, 1788." 

To this truly Russian order Jones has affixed the following characteristic 
note : — " A warrior is always ready, and I had not come there an apprentice." 
His reply to this order led to his instant dismissal. Potemkin was a person 
in no shape to be trifled with'; and though Jones at first attributed his want of 
favour in this powerful quarter to the ill office of those around Potemkin, lie 
came to see that much of what he suffered emanated directly from the im- 
patience, jealousy, and caprice of his spoiled tyrant. When the Rear-Admiral 
went to head-quarters to take leave, Potemkin disdained and disclaimed the 
insinuation of being influenced by those around him. " Do not imagine any 
one leads me, — leads me !" he swore and stamping with his foot, added, 
" Not even the Empress !" Fatal as the reply to the above order proved to 
Jones, and deeply as he regretted it, the reader must be pleased to see that he 
retained so much of his original spirit as appears in this singular document. 
' ; I have always," he says, " conformed myself immediately, without murmur- 
ing, and most exactly, to the commends of your Highness; and on occasions 
when you have deigned to leave anything to my own discretion, I have been 
exceeedingly flattered, and believe you have had no occasion tc repent. At 
present, in case the Capitan Pacha dees resolve on attempting anything before 
his departure, I can give assurance beforehand, that the brave officers and 
crews I have the honour to command will do their duty ' courageously,' 
though they have not yet been rewarded for the important services they have 
performed for the empire under my eyes. I answer for this with my 1 on our, 
and will explain myself fairly on this delicate point at the end of the cam- 
paign. In the meanwhile, I may merely say, that it is upon the sacred 
promise I have given them of demanding justice from your Highness in their 
behalf, that they have consented to stifle their grievances and keep silent." 
23* 



270 THE GOLD SWORDS. 

who had commanded the Russian fleet, having died, I was 
assured her Majesty had very important views in recalling 
me. Yet I could not but feel grieved to be deprived of my 
command when the campaign, so far as regarded maritime 
operations, was so nearly concluded. 

" As soon as the Prince of Nassau went off, all the gold 
swords were distributed among the officers of the flotilla. It 
may easily be imagined that this transaction, as well as 
several things which preceded it, were not calculated to give 
me much pleasure. The capture of the Turkish galley, and 
the boarding the galley of the Capitan Pacha on the 1st of 
July, were without dispute the most brilliant actions of the 
campaign of the Liman. The credit of them was most un- 
justly given to the flotilla, and my officers remained without 
any reward for the important services which they had ren- 
dered in these affairs, laying aside those of the 18th June, the 
30th of August, and the 9th of October, from which they 
reaped no advantage. After the gold swords had been dis- 
tributed, I myself heard several of the officers who got them 
express their astonishment, not being able to guess for what 
they had been so highly rewarded. 

" It is worthy of notice, that all the large vessels which the 
flotilla attacked were previously aground. In this case, they 
might be compared to men with their feet nailed to planks, 
and their hands tied behind their backs- This is the only in- 
stance 'in history of ships aground, and oui of the possibility 
of being re-captured, being attacked and destroyed, with their 
crews, by combustibles. It may be recollected, that during 
the whole campaign the flotilla had not taken even one small 
vessel afloat. Since a very mistaken notion has been formed 
of the vessels taken in the Liman on the 17th and 18th of 
June, which have been called " ships of the line," it is but 
right to say that I made Lieutenant Fox measure the hulls of 
the two largest, and we found that the size of the one was 
130, and of the other 135 feet English in total length, in the 



NASSAU'S EXPLOITS. 27! 

line of their first battery. Apply this to naval architecture. 
Yet the Prince of Nassau had been rewarded in a brilliant 
manner for ' having destroyed six, and captured two ships of 
the line. 1 The only three-masted vessel which escaped burn- 
ing upon the 18th June was a corvette of one battery, and 
four pieces between decks. I had almost forgot that there 
was one small brigantine of fourteen three-pounders. Such 
were two vessels of the line that were captured, and the latter 
was wrecked next day by the carelessness of those who 
had the charge of her. In place of eight vessels of the line, 
the Capitan Pacha had come into the Liman with only a de- 
tachment of corvettes, or large merchantmen, frigates, bomb- 
ships, and other craft. Only four of the corvettes carried 
guns between decks. Of this number was the vessel saved. 
On one of these four vesssels was displayed a square flag ; 
but there was the same on the galley and kirlangich of the 
Capitan Pacha. It has been already said that the grand fleet 
B without Kinbourn displayed three Admirals' flags. From the 
account of the campaign given by the Prince of Nassau, it 
appears that the Capitan Pacha had lost his best ship, manned 
with the picked men of his fleet, and his only flag as Grand 
Admiral, while it is well known that at the end of the campaign 
he went back to Constantinople with all the ships of the line 
he had at the commencement of it. 

" As it had been told me that some ill-intentioned persons in 
the army had said that I had been deprived of my command 
because the officers were unwilling to serve under me, I 
endeavoured to procure testimonials to the contrary, and 
have seen with regret that the mind is not always free ; and 
that it sometimes dare not render homage to truth.* 

* In the service in which Paul Jones was engaged that was impossible; 
which in any service requires considerable moral courage. His Russian 
Secretary drew up for the signature of the officers a testimony in favour of 
"Rear- Admiral Paul Jones, Chevalier of the Military Order of Merit, the 
Order of St. Anne, and of Cincinnatus ;" which, says the Secretary, thev, fo* 



272 INTERVIEW WITH THE PRINCE. 

" The last of the five frigates, called ' Sea Batteries,' did 
not join the squadron till the 19th of October, and the same 
day Admiral Mordwinoff placed the line of blockade in the 
road much farther out than it ever had been, so that the 
vessels masked the fire of all the guns on shore on both 
sides." [Here the Rear-Admiral enters into certain profes- 
sional criticisms on his successor's arrangements, which are 
neither peculiarly interesting, nor yet very good-natured, but 
which may, nevertheless, be very just. We pass them, and 
again take up the personal narrative.] 

" Having reflected that the season was too far advanced 
to render my services necessary in the North Sea before the 
following year, I wrote to the Prince-Marshal, offering to 
continue my services till the end of the campaign. I was 
indebted to him for the Order of St. Anne, and I have a 
heart naturally grateful.* He made his Secretary, M. Popoff, 
write me, that since I was recalled by the order of the Em- 
press, it was necessary I should obey. 

" I was, however, invited to head-quarters to take leave, 
and to receive a letter from the Prince-Marshal for her Impe- 
rial Majesty. As I was much interested personally, and still 
more so in relation to my officers, I after dinner spoke freely, 
and told M. Popoff all that was on my mind. This gentle- 
man repeated all I said to the Prince-Marshal. He was 
offended at first, but afterwards he sent for me to talk with 
him. Without failing in the respect due to him, I spoke very 
freely. I told him he had played an unfair game at the 
opening of the campaign in dividing the command in the 
Liman in the existing circumstances of the country ; and 

powerful reasons, declined to subscribe, though they at the same time owned 
there was nothing in it contrary to pure truth. It was drawn up on the very 
eve of Paul Jones's departure for St. Pctersburgh. The captain of his late 
ship, the Wolodimer, subscribed it, and also one of the other officers. 

* Paul Jones never appears to have had a true idea of the whole character 
of Potemkin till long afterwards. Potemkin was, indeed, one of the most 
extraordinary monsters that ever lived, — a jumble of every moral contra 
diction 



PRINCE'S OFFER DECLINED. 273 

that, if I had not resolved to sacrifice my own feelings in 
order to manage the persons he had given me for colleagues, 
the campaign would have taken a very different turn. He 
confessed it, but said it was too late to think of this now. 
He then said he would be glad to see me fixed in Russia, 
and that he was disposed to give me solid proofs of his esteem, 
both now and in future. I showed him the testimonial of the 
captain of the Wolodimer, and some other papers, to con- 
vince him that he had neither done justice to me nor to the 
squadron. He said the Prince of Nassau pretended all was 
done by himself; ' but I have never,' said he, ' been deceived 
in him. I have always known him for what he is.' He pro- 
posed that I should go to Tagenroc to equip and command a 
squadron he was building there ; but, as I had been brought 
to Russia to take the chief command in the Black Sea, and 
had received orders from the Empress to repair to St. Peters- 
bureh, I declined the offer. I onlv entreated that he would 
consider the services of my officers, and give them the 
seniority they had lost by the promotion of those officers of 
the flotilla who did not belong to the naval service. Admiral 
Mordwinoff made the same request, and the Prince promised 
to do them justice. 

" Two days afterwards I received a letter from the Prince- 
Marshal for the Empress, in which he noticed the zeal and 
anxiety I had ever shown for her service, and to render 
myself worthy of her favour.* 

* We give this letter. It is a good specimen of the sort of thing ; nor is it 
possible to believe that a man so acute as Paul Jones was duped or hood- 
winked by this fashion of speaking and writing, though for political reasons 
lie suffered himself to appear so : — 

" Madam, — In sending to the high throne of your Imperial Majesty Rear 
Admiral M. Paul Jones, I take, with submission, the liberty of certifying the 
eagerness and zeal which he has ever shown for the service of your Imperial 
Majesty, and to render himself worthy of the high favour of your Imperial 
Majesty. •* From the most faithful subject of your 

Imperial Majesty, 

" Prince Potemkin Tauricien. 

» 31st October. 1788." 



274 CAPTURE OF BERESANE. 

" On the 4th November, the Capitan Pacha having with- 
drawn his advanced guard in the night, set sail in the morn- 
ing with his whole force, entering first Varna, and afterwards 
Constantinople, with every ship of the line he had at the 
opening of the campaign. It is singular that this enterprising 
commander did not attempt to force the entrance of the 
Liman; for Admiral MordwinofThad placed the squadron in 
so exposed and disadvantageous a situation, that the fire of 
the land-batteries, which should have flanked him without, 
was entirely covered. But it may be presumed that the 
Turkish Admiral believed he had done enough for the safety 
of Oczakow by the succours he had thrown in. 

" On the morning of the 7th, agreeably to a secret order 
from the Prince-Marshal, the Saporoses landed, to the number' 
of 2000, on the island of Beresane. The Turkish garrison 
being only 300 strong, fired a few random shots, and then 
surrendered at discretion. 

" Having given the officers under me such testimonials as 
they merited, I embarked on the morning of the 9th Novem- 
ber, in a small open galley for Cherson. I was three days 
and three nights on the way, and suffered a great deal from 
the excessive cold. The day after my arrival the river was 
frozen in, and I was taken dangerously ill. My health was 
not sufficiently re-established to enable me to proceed before 
the 6th of December. Having arrived at St. Elizabeth, ] 
received intelligence that Oczakow had been taken by storm 
on the 6th. The garrison was eleven thousand strong, 
including the three thousand that the Capitan Pacha had 
thrown into the place before he sailed. But the cold had 
become extreme, and the Russian army being formed in six 
columns to attack the place at day-dawn, the Turks were 
completely taken by surprise, and, becoming panic-struck, 
suffered themselves to be throttled like as many sheep. In 
he fury o f the assault the Russian soldiers spared nothing. I 



JONES AT ST. PETERSBURGH. 275 

have been assured, that from eighteen to nineteen thousand 
Turks perished on that day ! 

" As I wished to delay my return to court till the arrival 
of the Prince-Marshal, 1 stopt some days at Skloff, where 
General Soritsch loaded me with civilities. I arrived at 
St. Petersburgh on the 28th December, and was ordered to 
appear at court on the 31st, when her Imperial Majesty did 
me the honour of granting me a private audience. I pre- 
sented the letter the Prince-Marshal had given me. A few 
days afterwards the Empress sent me word, through Count 
de Dmitrijew-Mamonow, that she must wait the arrival of 
Prince Potemkin before deciding on what was to be done 
regarding me. In the meanwhile Count Besborodko told 
me, that a command of greater importance was intended for 
me than that of the Black Sea. 

" On the 1st February, the Prince-Marshal not having yet 
arrived, I gave in to the Vice-Chancellor, Count d'Osterman, 
a project for forming an alliance, political and commercial, 
between Russia and the United States. As the object of this 
project was reciprocal advantages, and, above all, to encou- 
rage the commerce of the Black Sea, and of the new settle- 
ments in the Crimea, I had long intended to transmit it 
to the Prince-Marshal; and on his arrival at Court, about 
the middle of February, I sent him a copy. Some time 
afterwards he took me into his cabinet, and said that my 
plan contained some good ideas ; but that he did not think it 
expedient to adopt it at this time, as this might still further 
irritate the English against Russia, and that it was necessary 
first to make peace with the Turks. 

" I might say a great deal more about the fleet and flotilla 
( f Cherson, but for the present I have said enough." [The 
Rear-Admiral does, however, say a good deal about he 
construction and equipment of the Russian ships, and the 
internal regulations of the Russian navy, which shows much 
professional acuteness, but must have small interest now that 



276 THE RUSSIAN NAVY. 

all is changed. The speculations of a clever and a practical 
man forty years ago, on the opening prospects of the Russian 
empire, compared with its actual state, are, however, both 
curious and important.] " The commerce of the Black Sea," 
he says, "is an object of very great imporiance; but this 
commerce will always be annoyed and often interrupted by 
the Turks, till Russia has a stronger fleet in the Black Sea to 
hold them at bay, and to place the keys of Constantinople in 
the hands of the Empress. Russia having all the requisite 
materials, in making the necessary arrangements with order 
and economy (without speaking of war, to avoid exciting 
suspicion in powers jealous of her glory.) this deficiency might 
be supplied in a few years. The means of obtaining good 
seamen is to create a merchant-trade, — to form an alliance 
with the United States, — and to have a squadron of evolution' 
on the Black Sea, directed by an admiral and a properly- 
instructed staff. 

" I have always believed that Russia requires a port on the 
Asiatic side, opposite the Crimea, to protect the fleet in winds 
and currents, and to be as it were a sentinel-post on the 
Turks. I have thought of Sinople for this purpose, and I 
spoke of it to the Empress and Prince Potemkin ; but, being 
afterwards better informed, I found a more suitable situation, 
where I am certain such a post could be securely established 
at small cost, and beard the whole Ottoman empire. 

" I must be permitted to conclude my journal with some 
reflections naturally suggested by matters affecting my per- 
sonal honour. I have never been able to conjecture the 
reason which made Prince Potemkin order Admiral Mord- 
winoflf to give up to him the official account of our operations, 
which I had drawn up in conformity lo the orders of the 
Admiralty of the Black Sea, as I was assured he had done, 
both by Admiral MordwinofT and his brother-in-law. No 
more could I guess why Prince Potemkin had given orders 
that no notice should be taken of the little frigate Alexander. 



s 

LETTER FROM THE MINISTER. 277 

which had been run down in the battle of the 17th June. 
This information also I had from Admiral Mordwinoff after 1 
had given up to him the command of the squadron. I have 
been assured that this frigate was always retained in the list 
of the marine. When I found that I received no testimony 
of the favour of the Empress in this affair, and on other occa- 
sions very interesting to the state, I was compelled to think 
that she had been ill-informed, for her ambition is to be 
esteemed the most magnanimous and the most generous of 
all sovereigns.* 

" I received a letter from the Minister of the United 
States (to the Court of Versailles,) dated Paris the 23d 
March, 1789, which began by telling me, that a letter he 
had received from me, dated at St. Petersburgh, the 31st 
January, was the only proof my friends had of my existence 
since I had left Copenhagen.] If I had played the part of a 

* It is no new incident in any service for one man to gain the victory for 
which another is rewarded. This must sometimes occur from due regard to 
rank and subordination, even where there is the strongest desire to do strict 
justice to all the commanders. To the counsels of Varage, Captain Winter, 
and a Milanese officer, De Litta, the subsequent victory of the Cronstadt fleet 
over the Swedes, for which Nassau was so highly rewarded, were universally 
ascribed. The most brilliant and decisive sea-battle ever gained by the Rus- 
sians, that of Tschesme, where the whole Turkish fleet, a town and castle, 
were taken or destroyed in one morning, was fought by the English officers, 
Elphinstone, Greig, and especially Dugdale, who performed prodigies of reck- 
less valour at the greatest personal hazard. Yet the Empress thought fit tc 
attribute the victory to Alexy Orloff, either from policy or want of information. 
Potemkin himself was never more munificently rewarded for what he had 
actually accomplished, than was Orloff for a victory of which he obtained the 
credit. There were great public rejoicings; pillars and palaces were erected, 
and titles, estates, orders, or whatever the imagination of the Empress could 
devise to do him honour, were heaped on the murderer of her husband, tc 
whom she had formerly owed a considerable share of her usurped crown. 

t In Russia, letters were systematically intercepted. This was part of tne 

policy of the government ; and such things have been heard of in that country 

even of later date than the reign of Catherine II. When the Archduke Pan. 

was permitted to travel through Europe with the Archdutchess, he was so 

24 



278 FALSE ACCOUNTS, 

cipher in the campaign of the Litnan it was for the first time. 
I either deserved to lose my head, or the history of the ope- 
rations on the Liman, which had been got up in St. Peters- 
burgh during the winter, and which I saw with astonishment 
in the office of M. Popoff, merited to be burnt. I assert, that 
it was falsified even to the most trifling circumstances. 

" I have acted a public and distinguished part for fifteen 
years among an enlightened people, where the press is 
free, and where the conduct of every man is open to discus- 
sion, and subjected to the judgment of his fellow-citizens. No 
man can play the hypocrite during so long a period in a career 
so trying as was mine. It was natural for the Prince of Nassau 
and Brigadier Alexiano to be my enemies, for they only sought 
their own advantage ; and Prince Potemkin, who knew better, 
did wrong to place me in competition with them ; but I cannot 
conceive how it happened that I had around Prince Potemkin 
other enemies as powerful as they were malicious. I ought 
to have found only friends in Russia, for I have served that 
empire faithfully and well. The manner in which Prince 
Potemkin has changed in regard to me, since the commence- 
ment of the war, exceeds all imagination. While he supposed 
that my services would be an acquisition in directing the 
maritime operations against the Turks, the Admirals Mord- 
winoffand Woinowitch entirely lost his confidence as officers ; 
and it is evident that Woinowitch had not regained it on the 
19th of August, when it was proposed that I should go to 
Sevastopole to take command of the fleet. When I had the 
misfortune to offend Prince Potemkin by the freedom of my 
letter of the 14th October, he sent several couriers, one after 

well aware of the jealousy of his mother and her government, that he arranged 
a private correspondence to be forwarded to the Swedish post-offices by 
couriers. His correspondent was a young aid-de-camp, Bibikoff, who some- 
times permitted himself to describe persons about the court without sufficient 
regard to decorum. Among those honoured with his notice was One Eye, 
as he termed Potemkin. The courier was intercepted at Riga, and Paul's 
witty correspondent was exiled to Astracan, where he shortly died. 



MORDWINOFF DISGRACED. 279 

another, entreating that Admiral Mordwinoff would take 
command of the squadron, which the latter only at last ac- 
cepted on condition of receiving carte blanche, and insisted 
that the Prince should not interfere in any arrangements he 
thought fit to make. 

" I have mentioned that the Dnieper was frozen over the 
day after my arrival at Cherson, in consequence of which the 
squadron and flotilla were placed in danger, from not having 
been properly secured (for the season) after the departure of 
the Capitan Pacha. I understood that some of the vessels 
were lost in the Liman, and that the Wolodimer, to save her- 
self, was obliged to risk the passage to Sevastopole without a 
good part of her ballast. 

" Briefly — in a few days after my departure from Cherson, 
Admiral Mordwinoff was disgraced and sent from the ser- 
vice, whilst Admiral Woinowitch, who had married the 
daughter of Alexiano, was placed at the head of the Admiralty, 
with the chief command of the fleet, and the entire confidence 
of Prince Potemkin. 

" It is said that Russia has no longer need of foreign naval 
officers. No one is more desirous than myself that this may 
be so, for I cannot be jealous of any one, and I must ever de- 
sire the prosperity of a country I have served. I may, how- 
ever, be allowed to notice, that this opinion is not of very 
ancient date. If this had been believed before the last cam- 
paign, why were my service so anxiously sought after ? — It 
assuredly could not have been in compliment to me, nor in 
order afterwards to make use of me in promoting certain 
political designs. I have frequently heard, that, since the war 
broke out with Sweden, measures have been taken to induce 
Rear-Admiral Kinsbergen to quit Holland, and re-enter the 
service of Russia. His countrymen allege that he had been 
offered the rank of vice-admiral, the Order of Alexander 
Nevsky, and a fixed revenue of 20,000 roubles a-year ; and 
that he had refused all these advantages, as he had lately 



280 JONES'S SENTIMENTS, 

married a wife with a fortune which enabled him to live in 
independence in his own country. 
"It is known that the King of Sweden made advantageous 
offers to Admiral Curtis of the English navy, to induce him 
to take command of the fleet against Russia ; and that this 
officer declined them, not wishing to hazard his professional 
reputation in command of a fleet which was not in so good 
a condition as that of England. 

M The Empress will do me the justice to remember, that 
when I entered her service I did not say one word regarding 
my personal interests. I have a soul too noble for that ; and 
if my heart had not been devoted to her Majesty, I would 
never have drawn my sword in her cause. I have now 
nothing for it but, like Admiral Kinsbergen, to marry a rich „ 
wife ; but I have sufficient to support me wherever I choose, 
and I have seen enough of the world to be a philosopher. 
When I arrived at the Black Sea, if reasons much stronger 
than those which withheld Admiral Curtis had not influenced 
my mind and heart, which were devoted to the Empress, I 
would never have hoisted my flag on board the Wolodimer. 
I would have refused the poor command offered me, and 
which was not worthy of me. I have never puffed off my 
own actions, nor given any piece to the press containing my 
own panegyric* 

"I respect the names of Kinsbergen and Curtis; but the 
first duty of a gentleman is to respect his own character ; and 
I believe, without vanity, that the name of Paul Jones is of 
as much value as theirs. It is thirty years since I entered 
the navy, and I have had for friends and instructors a d'Or- 

* The pettish tone of some of these remarks affords an amusing- contrast to 
the affected coolness and indifference of the sentiments they express ; but it 
should be remembered, that, just before this Journal was extended, the man 
who suffered all the neglect, injustice, and insult which it records, had been 
•tritated to the verge of despair and madness by persecution and injury of a 
nler and yet more despicable nature. Under the feeling of these wrongrs he 
writes 



IJ.L TREATMENT OF OFFICERS. 281 

villiers and a Pavilon. Unfortunately Prince Potemkin never 
gave himself the trouble to know me. 

" I had the happiness to be loved by my officers and men, 
because I treated them justly, and set them a good example 
in fight. After I ceased to command, though the campaign 
only lasted a few days, the seamen soon found the difference. 
They said they had lost their father: they were immediately 
served with bad provisions. 

" I have already noticed, that Prince Potemkin had pro- 
mised, in presence of Admiral Mordwinoff, to advance the 
officers under my command, and to restore to them the 
seniority they had lost by the promotion of the officers of the 
flotilla ; but I have learnt with much pain that he has not kept 
his word, and that in consequence my officers, to the number 
of fifty, have demanded their dismission. Not one of them 
offered to resign while I held command. Admiral Woino- 
witch having represented to Prince Potemkin that without 
these officers the fleet was useless, he was compelled to ad- 
vance them all. I have been told that they were not yet 
satisfied, as they were not restored to their seniority, and that 
they proposed to quit the service at the end of the year. I 
hope justice will be done them, for they are brave men. For 
myself I have been marked out from every other officer that 
served in the Liman ; I alone have obtained no promotion, 
though I commanded and was alone responsible ! I may be 
told that I ought to be satisfied with having received the rank 
of Rear-Admiral on entering the service. I reply, that I 
could not have been offered an inferior grade. One officer 
may deserve as much in a day as another in a lifetime, and 
every officer ought to be advanced according to his merits 
I was not favoured in rank on entering the Russian service. 
[ had a full right to obtain that which I accepted. A man, 
only twenty-four years of age, has since been received into 
the service with the rank of major-general. I wish to say 
nothing against this officer; it is not always years that give 
24* 



282 BAD COURTIERS. 

skill, much less genius, but he must do a great deal before he 

has my experience. 

" It is painful, for the honour of human nature, to reflect on 
how many malevolent and deceitful person's surround the 
great, and particularly crowned heads. I speak from my 
own unhappy experience. Some persons had the malice to 
make Prince Potemkin believe that I made unhandsome 
strictures on his military conduct, and ridiculed his manner 
of conducting the siege of Oczakow. I have heard a great 
deal said on this subject, and I am aware that it excited con- 
siderable discontent in the army. I was told, during my 
illness at Cherson, that a thousand of his officers had demanded 
their dismission; but I defy any one to say to my face that I 
ever allowed myself to criticise his operations. I have been^ 
strongly attached to him, of which I have given proofs during 
my command, and even after he unjustly superseded me. 
There is evidence of this in my letter of the 7th November, 
at a time when I certainly had reason to complain of his 
conduct. 

" I have been deeply injured by those secret machinations 
in the opinion of the Empress. My enemies have had the 
wickedness to make her believe that I was a cruel and brutal 
man; and that I had, during the American war, even killea 
my own nephew / 

" It is well known, that from motives of revenge, the Eng- 
lish have invented and propagated a thousand fictions and 
atrocities to stain, wound, and injure the celebrated men who 
effected the American revolution: — a Washington and a 
Franklin, two of the most illustrious and virtuous men that 
have ever adorned humanity, have not been spared by these 
calumniators. Are they now the less respected on this 
account by their fellow-citizens ? — On the contrary, they are 
universally revered, even in Europe, as the fathers of their 
country, and as examples of all that is great and noble in the 
human character. 



AMERICAN PRISONERS. 283 

•• In civil wars it is not wonderful that opposite factions 
should mutually endeavour to make it be believed that eacli 
is in the right ; and it is obvious that the party most in the 
wrong will always be the most calumnious. If there had 
really been anything against my character, the English 
would not have failed to furnish convincing proofs of it. ] 
was known, with very slender means, to have given more 
alarm to their three kingdoms during the war than any othei 
individual had done. 

" I have heard, that, at the period of my entering the Rus- 
sian service, the English in St. PetersbuYgh cried out against 
me, and asserted that I had been a contraband trader. All 
the world knows that men of this description are actuated 
entirely by avarice; and every one to whom I have the 
honour to be known is aware that I am one of the least sel- 
fish of mankind. This is known to the whole American peo- 
ple. I have given proofs of it not easily shown, of which I 
possess very flattering testimonies. In a letter written on the 
29th November, 1782, to Congress, by Mr. Morris, minister 
of the marine and finance departments, after having made 
my eulogium with the warmth of a true patriot, who 
thoroughly knew me, he says, that ' I had certainly merited 
the favour of Congress by services and sacrifices the most 
signal/ Men do not change their characters in these 
respects. 

" If my heart has bled for the Americans, — above all, for 
those shut up as victims in English prisons by an act of Par- 
liament as sanguinary as unjust, — if I have exposed my health 
and my life to the greatest dangers, — if I have sacrificed my 
personal tranquillity and my domestic happiness, with a por- 
tion of my fortune and my blood, to set at liberty these vir- 
tuous and innocent men, — have I not given proofs sufficiently 
striking that I have a heart the most tender, a soul the most 
elevated 1 — I have done more than all this. So far from being 
harsh and cruel, nature has given me the mildest disposition 



2S4 TYRANNY IN THE ENGLISH NAVY. 

I was formed for love and friendship, and not to be a seaman 
or a soldier, to which I have sacrificed my natural inclination. 

" As an oliicer I love good discipline, which I consider in- 
dispensable to the success of operations, particularly at sea, 
where men are brought into such close contact. In the 
English navy it is known that captains of ships are often 
tyrants, who order the lash for the poor seamen very fre- 
quently for nothing. In the American navy we have almost 
the same regulations; but I look on my crew as my children, 
and I have always found means to manage them without 
flogging. * 

" I never had a nephew, nor any other relation, under my 
command. Happily these facts are known in America, and 
they prove how cruel and harsh I am. I have one dear^ 
nephew,* who is still too young for service, but who now 
pursues his studies. Since I came to Russia I have intended 
him for the Imperial Marine. Instead of imbruing my hands 
in his blood he will be cherished as my son. 

" In short, my conduct has obtained for me the returns 
most grateful to my heart. I have had the happiness to give 
universal satisfaction to two great and enlightened nations 
which I have served. Of this I have received singular 
proofs. I am the only man in the world that possesses a 
sword given by the King of France. It is to me a glorious 
distinction to wear it ; and above all, to have received it as 
a proof of the particular esteem of a monarch so august, — a 
monarch who has declared himself the Protector of the rights 
of the human race, and who adds to this glorious title that of 
citizen ! I have indelible proofs of the high consideration of 
the United States ; but. what completes my happiness is the 
esteem and friendship of the most virtuous of men, whose 
fame will be immortal ; and that a Washington, a Franklin, 
a D'Estaing, a La Fayette, think the bust of Paul Jones 

* The only son of the Rear-Admiral's eldest sister, the late Mrs Taylor of 
Dumfries. 



JONES'S SENTIMENTS. 85 

worthy of being placed side by side with their own. It is 
then certain that this is not the bust of one * * * 

# # # # ## * # 

" Since I am found too frank and too sincere to make my 
way at the Court of Russia without creating powerful enemies. 
I have philosophy enough to withdraw into the peaceful bosom 
of friendship; but, as I love virtue better than reward, and as 
my greatest ambition is to preserve, even in the shades of re- 
treat, the precious favour of the Empress, I may tell her Ma- 
jesty, that, even in the midst of my persecutions, my mind 
was occupied by plans for the essential advancement of her 
service, of which I gave some idea to her minister in June 
last (1789.) I have not entered into details, for there are 
politicians who before now have robbed me of my military 
plans. I have other projects in view from which the flag of 
Russia might derive new lustre, and which would cause but 
little expense to her Majesty at the outset, and perhaps no- 
thing in the end, if I had the direction ; for I would be able 
to make war support war. Whatever be the issue, I have 
the satisfaction of having done my duty in Russia, and that 
without any views of self-interest. It is affirmed, that, in 
general, strangers who come to Russia are adventurers in 

* In the mysterious and now perhaps inexplicable intrigue set on foot at 
the return of Paul Jones from the Liman, to ruin him personally in the good 
opinion of the Empress, for he had been professionally sacrificed before, it ap. 
pears, by a passage following the above extravagant self-eulogium, (which we 
can only pardon in an indignant and persecuted man,) that accusations had 
been insinuated against him of a yet darker and more revolting character 
than the alleged murder of his nephew and the violation of a girl. Had not 
the latter calumny already been made public, as Paul Jones takes no notice of 
it in his Journal, we would scarce have polluted our pages by reference to it. 
The circumstance, however, has been noticed by Count Segur, and adverted 
to by the American biographer ; and as we possess ample means from his 
papers, and the testimony of Segur and Littlepage, of establishing his inno- 
cence in this affair, it is noticed. Indeed this absurd charge died away be- 
fore he left Russia, though stated by the historian of Catherine II. as the cause 
vf his being driven from that country ! 



286 JONES'S SENTIMENTS. 

search of fortune, not having the means of living in their own 
country. I cannot say as to this ; but I at least hope that the 
Empress will not class me with those. 

" Briefly, I am satisfied with myself; and I have the hap- 
piness to know, that, though my enemies may not be converted 
into friends, my name will nevertheless be always respected 
by worthy men who know me ; and it is to me a satisfaction 
and a signal triumph at the moment of my leaving Russia, 
that the public, and even the English in St. Petersburgh, with 
whom I had no connexion, have now changed their sentiments 
in regard to me, give me their esteem, and regret my de- 
parture. 

«St Petersburgh, 29th July, 1789." 



END OF THE JOURNAL OF THE CAMPAIGN OF THE LIMAN 




TOTEMKIN'S CHARACTER. 



287 



CHAPTER X. 




BRIEF notice of Russian af 
fairs is perhaps necessary to 
enable the reader to form a 
correct opinion of the conduct 
of Paul Jones during this period. 
The whole history of the 
campaign, so far as it regards 
Paul Jones, is comprehended 
S^^vsjwv>- in the character of Potemkin. 

He had provoked the war with Turkey from motives that his 
extraordinary character render credible, though in relation 
to any other individual they would remain unworthy of belief. 
Already loaded with titles, honours, dignities, and crosses of 
almost all the European orders, he still secretly longed for 
the grand ribbon of the Order of St. George, an order insti- 
tuted by the Empress. To dismember the Ottoman empire 
still farther, and procure this distinction, a war was to be 
provoked by intrigues, bribery, and the promotion of intestine 
divisions in the Turkish dominions ; and when all was pre- 
pared, by the insolence of the Russian envoys and consuls, 
and the barefaced violation of existing treaties, the discredit 
of actual aggression was artfully thrown on the Porte. Russia 
had already virtually made war, but the Turks first declared 
hostilities. The person to whom the conduct of the war on 
the part of Russia was confided, — Field-Marshal Prince Po- 
temkin, — was one of the most extraordinary men of his own 
or of any age. If ever great genius be allied to madness it 
was so in the wildly-organized mind of Potemkin. The Prince 



5>88 POTEMKIN. 

He Ligne, who had closely examined his character, and Count 
de Segur, who Jong knew him intimately, and watched him 
strictly, have both left portraits of this singular personage, 
which, though French in their tone and colouring, give a 
tolerable idea of the exterior of the man on whose interests 
and caprices the fate of the Russian empire as well as of Paul 
Jones depended. Neither the acute Austrian, de Ligne, nor 
the manners-seizing Frenchman, de Segur, held, however, a 
plummet-line of sufficient length to sound all the depths of Po- 
temkin's character. The Prince de Ligne saw a great deal 
of " the Prince," as he was called, during the stately progress 
of the Empress in 1787, and afterwards at head-quarters 
during the campaign of 1788. His sketch of an unparalleled 
original, which was written exactly at the time when 
Potemkin was in daily contact with Paul Jones, commences 
thus : — " I here behold a commander-in-chief who looks idle 
and is always busy ; who has no other desk than his knees, 
no other comb than his fingers ; constantly reclining on his 
couch, yet sleeping neither in the night nor in day-time. His 
zeal for the Empress he adores keeps him incessantly awake 
and uneasy ; and a cannon-shot, to which he himself is not 
exposed, disturbs him with the idea, that it costs the life of 
some of his soldiers; trembling for others, brave for himself; 
stopping under the hottest fire of a battery to give orders, yet 
more an Ulysses than an Achilles ; alarmed at the approach of 
danger, frolicsome when it surrounds him ; dull in the midst 
of pleasure; unhappy in being too fortunate ; surfeited with 
everything; easily disgusted, morose, inconstant; a profound 
philosopher, an able minister, a sublime politician, or like a 
child of ten years of age ; not revengeful ; asking pardon for 
a pain he has inflicted; quickly repairing an injustice; think- 
ing he loves God when he fears the devil, whom he fancies 
still greater and bigger than himself: waving one hand to the 
femaies that please him, and with the other making the sign 
>f trie cross , embracing the feet of a statue of the Virgin, or 



P0TEMK1N. 289 

the alabaster neck of his mistress; receiving numberless 
presents from his sovereign, and distributing them immediately 
to others ; accepting estates of the Empress and returning 
them, or paying her debts without her knowledge. ,? * The 
Prince de Ligne proceeds in the same strain of antithesis: — 
"Gambling from morn to night, or not at all; preferring 
prodigality in giving to regularity in paying ; prodigiously 
rich, and not worth a farthing ; abandoning himself to distrust 
or to confidence, to jealousy or to gratitude, to ill-humour or 
to pleasantry ; talking divinity to his generals and tactics to 
his bishops ; never reading, but sifting every one with whom 
he converses, and contradicting to be better informed ; un- 
commonly affable or extremely savage ; affecting the most 
attractive or the most repulsive manners ; appearing by turns 
the proudest satrap of the East, or the most polished courtier 
of Louis XIV ; concealing under the appearance of harshness 
the greatest benevolence of heart ; whimsical with regard to 
time, repasts, rest, and inclinations ; like a child, wanting to 
have everything, or like a great man, knowing how to do 
without many things; sober, though seemingly a glutton; 
gnawing his fingers, or apples and turnips ; scolding or laugh- 
ing; mimicking or swearing; engaged in wantonness or 
prayers ; singing or meditating ; calling or dismissing ; send- 
ing for twenty aides-de-camp, and saying nothing to any of 
them; bearing heat better than any man, while he seems to 
think of nothing but the most voluptuous baths ; not caring 
for cold, though he appears unable to exist without furs ; 
always in his shirt without drawers, or in rich regimentals 

* This is pure fiction. Potemkin would never, if possible, pay his own 
debts. When any one came to demand payment, Popoff his secretary was 
asked why that man was not paid ? but, by a preconcerted signal, (the Prince 
closing his hand,) the secretary was given to understand that no payment was 
intended to be made : when, on the contrary, he opened his hand, which was 
more rarely, the debt was to be discharged. The Empress had often paid hi* 
debts. His rapacity exceeded his profusion. 
25 



290 POTEMKIN. 

embroidered on all the seams ; barefoot, or in slippei* urjbriw- 
dered with spangles; wearing neither hat nor cap; it is fhus 
I saw him once in the midst of a musket-fire. Sorretlmes in 
a night-gown ; sometimes in a splendid tu r ne, with his three 
stars, his orders, and diamonds as largj a r ; a thumb round the 
portrait of the Empress, — they seemed placed there to attract 
the balls ; — crooked and almost bent double when he is at 
home ; and tall, erect, proud, handsome, noble, majestic, or 
fascinating, when he shows himself to the army, like Agamem- 
non in the midst of the monarchs of Greece. What, then, is 
his magic 1 — Genius, natural abilities, an excellent memory, 
and much elevation of soul ; malice without the design of in- 
juring ; artifice without craft ; a happy mixture of caprices ; 
the art of conquering every heart in his good moments ; much 
generosity, graciousness, and justice in his rewards ; a refined ' 
or correct taste ; the talent of guessing what he is ignorant 
of; and a consummate knowledge of mankind." 

This sketch is rather the eulogium than the true character 
of Potemkin. He had originally been the favourite of the 
Empress, from which thraldom he alone, of her numerous 
lovers, passed into the possession of greater political power 
than was enjoyed by any other man in Russia. Till his death 
he remained master of the destinies of the empire, and 
retained a paramount influence over the mind of Catherine. 
He held every office of importance in the state. It was even 
whispered, that, after the death of her favourite, Lanskoi, 
Catherine gave her hand in secret to Potemkin. This was 
doubted at the time, and, at all events, made no change in 
the mode of life of the Empress or the Prince. It was he, 
in general, who either chose or recommended the favourites 
that appeared in rapid succession. A part of his revenue 
was a hundred thousand roubles from the Empress, and the 
same sum from the new favourite, as often as this office was 
changed. 

The portrait left of this extraordinary person by Count 



COUNT SEGUR'S SKETCH. 291 

Segur, if not exact, approaches more nearly to a true likeness 
than the epigrammatic sketch of De Ligne: — " Prince Gregory 
Alexandrovitch Potemkin was," says Segur, " one of the 
most extraordinary men of his times ; but, in order. to have 
played so conspicuous a part, he must have been in Russia, 
and have lived in the reign of Catherine II. In any other 
country, in any other times, with any other sovereign, he 
would have been misplaced ; and it was a singular stroke of 
chance that created this man for the period that tallied with 
him, and brought together and combined all the circumstances 
with which he could tally. 

" In his person were collected the most opposite defects 
and advantages of every kind. He was avaricious and 
ostentatious, despotic and popular, inflexible and beneficent, 
haughty and obliging, politic and confiding, licentious and 
superstitious, bold and timid, ambitious and indiscreet. Lavish 
of his bounties to his relations, his mistresses, and his 
favourites, yet frequently paying neither his household nor his 
creditors. His consequence always depended on a woman ; 
and he was always unfaithful to her. Nothing could equal 
the activity of his mind, nor the indolence of his body. No 
dangers could appal his courage ; no difficulties force him to 
abandon his projects. But the success of an enterprise 
always brought on disgust. 

" He wearied the empire by the number of his posts and the 
extent of his power. He was himself fatigued with the 
burthen of his existence ; envious of all that he did not do, 
and sick of all that he did. Rest was not grateful to him, nor 
occupation pleasing. Everything with him was desultory: 
business, pleasure, temper, carriage. In every company he 
had an embarrassed air, and his presence w r as a restraint on 
every company. He was morose to all that stood in awe 
of him, and caressed all such as accosted him with familiarity. 

" Ever promising, seldom keeping his word, and never for- 
getting anything. None had read less than he ; few people 



292 COUNT SEGUR'S SKETCH. 

were better informed. He had talked with the skilful in all 
professions, in all the sciences, in every art. None better 
knew how to draw forth and appropriate to himself the know- 
ledge of others. In conversation he would have astonished 
a scholar, an artist, an artisan, and a divine. His informa- 
tion was not deep, but it was very extensive. He never 
dived into a subject, but he spoke well on all subjects. 

" The inequality of his temper was productive of an incon 
ceivable oddity in his desires, in his conduct, and in his man- 
ner of life. One while he formed the project of becoming 
Duke of Courland ; at another he thought of bestowing on 
himself the crown of Poland. He frequently gave intimations 
of an intention to make himself a bishop or even a simple 
monk. He built a superb palace, and wanted to sell it before 
it was finished. One day he would dream of nothing but" 
war ; and only officers, Tartars, and Cossacks, were admitted 
to him ; the next day he was busied only with politics ; he 
would partition the Ottoman empire, and put in agitation all 
the cabinets of Europe. At other times, with nothing in his 
head but the court, dressed in a magnificent suit, covered 
with ribbons presented him by every potentate, displaying 
diamonds of extraordinary magnitude and brilliance, he was 
giving superb entertainments without any occasion. 

" He was sometimes known for a month, and in the face 
of all the town, to pass whole evenings at the apartments of 
a young female, seeming to have alike forgot all business and 
all decorum. Sometimes also, for several weeks success- 
ively, shut up in his room with his nieces and several men 
of his intimates, he would lounge on a sofa, without speaking, 
playing at chess, or at cards, with his legs bare, his shirt- 
collar unbuttoned, in a morning-gown, with a thoughtful front, 
his eyebrows knit, and presenting to the view of strangers 
who came to see him the figure of a rough and squalid 
Cossack. 

"All these singularities often put the Empress out of 



COUNT SEGUR'S SKETCH. 293 

humour, but rendered him more interesting to her. In his 
youth he had pleased her by the ardour of his passion, by his 
valour, and by his masculine beauty. Being arrived at ma- 
turity, he charmed her still by flattering her pride, by calming 
her apprehensions, by confirming her power, by cherishing 
her fancies of oriental empire, the expulsion of the barbarians, 
and the restoration of the Grecian republics. 

" At eighteen, an under officer in the horse-guards, on the 
day of the revolution, he persuaded his corps to take arms, 
and presented to Catherine his cockade as an ornament for 
her sword. Soon after, become the rival of OrlofT, he per- 
formed for his sovereign whatever the most romantic passion 
could inspire. He put out his eye to free it from a blemish 
which diminished his beauty. Banished by his rival, he ran 
to meet death in battle, and returned with glory. A success- 
ful lover, he quickly shook off the hypocritical farce, whose 
catastrophe held out to him the prospect of an obscure 
destiny. He himself gave favourites to his mistress, and be- 
came her confidant, her friend, her general, and her minister. 

" Panin was president of the council, and was a stickler 
for the alliance of Prussia. Potemkin persuaded his mistress 
that the friendship of the Emperor would be of more use to 
her in realizing her plans against the Turks. He connected 
her with Joseph II., and thereby furnished himself with the 
means of conquering the Crimea and the country of the Nogay 
Tartars, which depended upon it. Restoring to these regions 
their sonorous and ancient names, creating a maritime force 
at Cherson and Sevastopole, he persuaded Catherine to come 
and admire herself this new scene of his glory. Nothing 
was spared for rendering this journe}' renowned to the latest 
posterity. Thither were conveyed, from all parts of the 
empire, money, provisions, and horses. The highways were 
illuminated. The Borysthenes was covered with magnificent 
galleys. A hundred and fifty thousand soldiers were newly 
equipped. The Cossacks were brought together ; the Tartai s 



25 



294 COUNT SEGUR'S SKETCH. 

were disciplined. Deserts were peopled for the occasion ; 
and palaces were raised in the trackless wild. The nakedness 
of the plains of the Crimea was disguised by villages built on 
purpose, and enlivened by fireworks. Chains of mountains 
were illuminated. Fine roads were opened by the army. 
Howling wildernesses were transformed into English gardens. 
The King of Poland came to pay homage to her who had 
crowned him, and who afterwards struck him from the throne. 
The Emperor Joseph II. came himself to attend the triumphal 
progress of the Empress Catherine ; and the result of this 
brilliant journey was another war, which the English and the 
Prussians impolitically instigated the Turks to undertake, and 
which was only a fresh instrument to the ambition of Potem- 
kin, by affording him an occasion to conquer Oczakow, 
which remained to Russia, and to obtain the grand ribbon of 
St. George, the only decoration that was wanting to his 
vanity. But these latter triumphs were the term of his life. 
He died in Moldavia, almost by a sudden stroke; and his 
death, lamented by his nieces and by a small number of 
friends, concerned only his rivals, who were eager to divide 
his spoils, and was very soon followed by a total oblivion. 

" Like the rapid passage of those shining meteors which 
astonish us by their lustre, but are empty as air, Potemkin 
began everything, completed nothing, disordered the finances, 
disorganized the army, depopulated his country, and enriched 
it with other deserts. The fame of the Empress was in- 
creased by his conquests. The admiration they excited was 
for her ; and the hatred they raised for her minister. Posterity, 
more equitable, will perhaps divide between them both the 
glory of the successes and the severity of the reproaches. 
It will not bestow on Potemkin the title of a great man ; but 
it will mention him as an extraordinary person; and, to 
draw his picture with accuracy, he might be represented as a 
real emblem, as the living image of the Russian empire. 

" For, in fact, he was colossal like Russia. In his mind, 



POTEMKIN AND ROMANTZOFF. 295 

as in that country, were cultivated districts and desert plains 
It also partook of the Asiatic, of the European, of the Tar- 
tarian, and the Cossack ; the rudeness of the eleventh cen- 
tury, and the corruption of the eighteenth ; the polish of the 
arts, and the ignorance of the cloisters ; an outside of civili- 
zation, and many traces of barbarism. In a word, if we 
might hazard so bold a metaphor, even his two eyes, the one 
open, and the other closed, reminded us of the Euxine 
always open, and the Northern ocean, so long shut up 
with ice. 

" This portrait may appear gigantic ; but those who knew 
Potemkin will bear witness to its truth. That man had great 
defects ; but without them, perhaps, he would neither have 
got the mastery of his sovereign, nor that of his country. 
He was made by chance precisely such as he ought to 
be for preserving so long his power over so extraordinary a 
woman."* 

Segur might have added, that this Russian hero was as 
artful as his impetuous passions permitted; vindictive; ra- 
pacious, and self-willed, to a degree which denoted actual 
frenzy. When young, and though a favourite not yet quite 
established in the good graces of the Empress, he was, after 
a quarrel with her favourites, the Orloffs, in which he lost an 
eye, sent to serve under Field-Marshal Romantzoff. This 
distinguished commander treated him with civility, praised 
his military conduct to the Empress, but gave him neither his 
confidence nor esteem. The haughty Potemkin felt the 
humiliation, and never forgave the man, of whom he really 
had nothing to complain. He engaged in a despicable intrigue 
to ruin the Countess Bruce, for no other reason than that she 
had the misfortune to be the sister of the man he hated, and 
who disdained to cringe before him. Paul Jones complains 
mat his officers were not promoted during one campaign. 

* Life of Catherine II., Empress of Russia, vol. iii. p. 326 — 333, 



296 POTEMKIN'S FOLLIES. 

The officers of Romantzoff were kept from advancement for 
fourteen successive years, and the Field-Marshal himself re- 
tired at last in chagrin and disgust. It was no unfrequent thing 
for Potemkin to strike the Russian officers that were about 
him, though he did not venture to display the same vivacity 
of temper to foreigners. He sometimes, in the headlong im- 
pulse of rage, struck even the native nobility. Field-officers 
were frequently sent by him from the Crimea, and from places 
as distant, for a dish of a particular kind of fish-soup, which 
cost him three hundred roubles; or to St. Petersburgh or 
Riga for a few oysters or oranges. He at one period com- 
pelled the Empress to dismiss one of her favourites, (recom- 
mended by himself sometime before,) at the same instant that 
she ventured to expostulate with him for having struck the 
uncle of this young man. He ordered her to " dismiss that 
white negro, (the favourite Yermoloff,) or he would never 
again set his foot within the palace," — and the Empress 
obeyed ! Yermoloff was at the same moment sent on his 
travels. To Paul Jones he had emphatically said, " None 
led him — not even the Empress !" He was exceedingly in- 
dignant at the Swedish war, which interfered with his views 
on the Ottoman empire. He termed it an old woman's war. 
When Catherine wrote him an account of the hasty prepara- 
tions she had made to repel the Swedes who were approach- 
ing her frontier, she inquires, with the good humour which 
never deserted her, " Have I done right, my master V 9 This 
was less a jesting expression than her Majesty probably 
imagined. The end of this semi-barbarian is not a little 
edifying. Satiated and disgusted with wealth, honours, con- 
quest, and luxury, in the latter years of his life he would sit, 
throughout a long winter evening, alone, spreading out his 
diamonds on a black velvet cloth kept for this purpose, and 
arranging them in different figures, as crosses, stars, &c... 
weighing them, or passing them from hand to hand, like a 
child playing with cherry-stones, though certainly with not half 



POTEMKIN'S LAST DAYS. 29"} 

the enjoyment. He would often pass a couple of hours gnaw- 
ing his nails in gloomy silence, while he paced a saloon filled 
with mute company, his presence carrying dismay and blight- 
ing wherever he appeared. When attacked by the lingering 
fever which terminated his days in his fifty-second year, he 
disdained the advice of the court physicians despatched to 
him by the Empress, and continued to eat and drink with his 
ordinary intemperance. His usual breakfast at this time was 
a smoked goose, with a large quantity of wine and spirits. 
He dined in the same manner. His appetites were all extra- 
vagant and irregular, and indulged to excess. With fever 
raging in his blood, he determined to leave Yassy, whither 
he had gone to attend a congress with the agents of the 
Porte. He fancied the air of this place disagreed with him, 
and determined to go to Nicolayef, one of the towns he had 
built. He had not proceeded many miles, when he became 
so ill that his attendants lifted him from his carriage. He 
threw himself on the grass, and died under a tree ! This 
was in October, 1791. The wonders told of his riches, his 
estates, his gold, his diamonds, the splendour of his Tauridan 
Palace, and the magnificence of his fetes, resemble the 
enchantments of an oriental tale. Like his coadjutor, Suwar- 
row, Prince Potemkin was what they were pleased to think, 
or call, religious. Suwarrow never massacred ten or twenty 
thousand of his fellow-creatures in cold blood without return- 
ing thanks to Heaven, and giving glory for the achievement. 
Potemkin, for a Russian, could not be called cruel, but he was 
as superstitious as the meanest of his soldiers. At one time he 
affected extreme sanctity and mortification of life, and even 
threatened to turn monk. This was for a political purpose, 
and the grossest hypocrisy. But his superstition was unaf- 
fected. He regarded himself as the peculiar favourite of 
Heaven, and had great faith in his own good fortune. The 
first success over the Turkish fleet in the campaign of 1788 
was gained, as he boasted to the Prince de Ligne, on the 



298 THE PRINCE OF NASSAU'S CHARACTER. 

festival day of his patron, St. Gregory, — " Heaven had not 
forgotten him." Oczakow was stormed and carried on 
some other saint's day. The Prince of Nassau, the per- 
son with whom Paul Jones was in immediate competition, 
was a man of much feebler character. A sketch of his 
career in Russia is the strongest corroboration that the 
Journal of Rear- Admiral Jones can receive. 

The Prince of Nassau Siegen was fickle, arrogant, and 
of mean capacity. Paul Jones frequently throws doubts on 
his personal courage ; but a man whose whole life was spent 
in search of wild military adventures, and who continually 
exposed himself to personal danger, could scarcely have been 
a coward. Nassau proposed to accompany Jones in the secret 
expedition against England in 1779, and had abruptly aban- 
doned the scheme without explanation or apology, and with-" 
out even deigning to reply to the frequent letters which the 
disappointed commodore addressed to him. He had served 
in the unfortunate attempt of the French on the Island of 
Jersey, and in the futile attack of the combined powers of 
France and Spain at Gibraltar. On the breaking out of the 
war with Turkey he entered the Russian service. He had 
previously joined the Empress, along with Potemkin, on her 
celebrated progress to the Crimea, and was rather a favourite 
with both of those personages. He obtained the command in 
the Black Sea, and on the arrival of Jones, there is little doubt 
that the rival commanders viewed each other with mutual 
jealousy. In an affair which took place on the 29th July, 
which Paul Jones has not mentioned, the Prince of Nassau, 
waiting in vain for orders, and at last acting without them, 
had the good fortune to support Prince Anhalt in a very press- 
ing emergency, and to save a Russian battery. In his report 
to Potemkin, he boastingly apologizes " for having advanced 
with three gun : boats, and forced the Turks to retire, without 
orders." 

The reason of his withdrawing from the Liman before the 



NASSAU'S SCHEME. 29tf 

end of the campaign is thus related : — The supineness of Po- 
temkin in conducting the siege of Oczakow was the subject 
of much animadversion, and at last of great discontent in the 
army. For months he lay as if spell-bound in his camp, sur- 
rounded by the females and others, ministers of his luxury 
and pleasure, that accompanied him everywhere, displaying 
all the eccentricity and caprice of his character more extra- 
vagantly than he had ever done before. It is alleged that he 
was employed all this while in private intrigues to corrupt 
the Turkish garrison, which he expected to capitulate with- 
out bloodshed. In the meanwhile many lives had been lost 
in sorties and abortive assaults, as well as in the amphibious 
warfare of the Liman. In a council of war held to concert 
a decisive plan of attack, Nassau offered, " if he might be in- 
trusted with the operation, to effect a breach in a weak part 
of the fortress which he had discovered, and which should be 
large enough to admit a whole regiment." Potemkin, of- 
fended by this vain boast, and never, as he afterwards said to 
Paul Jones, " deceived by Nassau," sarcastically asked him 
" how many breaches he had made at Gibraltar V 9 Nassau 
offended in his turn, solicited the Empress for his recall. He 
was accordingly employed in the North Seas, with little honour 
to himself and great loss to the arms of Russia. In the fol- 
lowing year he presented the Empress with a plan of driving 
the British from India, drawn up by a Frenchman, M. St. 
Genie, whom he patronized. The Empress was at first quite 
captivated with a scheme, doubly welcome from being brought 
forward at the very time England was fitting out an arma- 
ment which was to act in the Baltic, and thus force her to 
make peace with the Porte. Potemkin, who had been en 
raged with the Swedish, or, as he called it, " the old woman's 
war," which interfered with his operations on the Euxine 
treated this wild plan of marching a Russian army to Bengal 
with the derision and contempt it merited. Nassau, however, 
still maintained a certain degree of favour with the Empress. 



300 THE PRINCE OF NASSAU. 

This was shown in a remarkable instance. By an injudicious 
and very ill-managed attack of the galley-fleet, which he 
commanded, on that which was commanded by Gustavus 
III., his fleet, though twice as large, was completely defeated, 
with the loss of the one-half of his vessels. His excessive 
arrogance was not quelled even by witnessing the disastrous 
consequences of his own ignorance and temerity. His vanity 
led him to imagine that the Russians had yielded to this very 
inferior Swedish force merely to " tarnish his glory." He 
accordingly thus insolently announced his disgraceful reverse 
to the Empress : — " Madam, I have had the misfortune to fight 
against the Swedes, the elements, and the Russians. I hope 
your Majesty will do me justice." To this extraordinary note 
the Empress replied, "You are in the right, because I am re- 
solved you shall be so. This is highly aristocratic, but it is" 
therefore suitable to the country in which we live. Depend 
always on your affectionate Catharine." 

Assisted by the counsels of several able naval officers of 
different countries, Nassau, before this time, had gained a 
victory over the Swedish fleet. This signal defeat, which 
soon produced peace, was deeply felt by the Empress, how- 
ever bravely she carried it ; and the Prince of Nassau, though 
loaded with honours, presented with a town-palace in St. 
Petersburgh, an estate, numerous peasants, and a pension of 
twelve thousand roubles, saw his favour decline, and after- 
wards entered the service of Prussia. His conduct in the 
Swedish campaigns affords, as was said, a strong corrobora- 
tion of the statements of Paul Jones : — guided by abler men, 
he succeeded, — left to himself, he rushed on destruction. 

It is now time to resume the regular course of the memoir, 
which left Paul Jones re-entering St. Petersburgh. 



BRITISH INFLUENCE. 



801 



CHAPTER XI. 




T was under very different cir- 
cumstances from those whicn 
attended his first triumphal en- 
try about eight months before, 
■that Jones returned to the Rus- 
sian capital. He, however, had 
still sufficient credit at court to 
obtain an audience of the Em- 
press, at which he delivered the letter of Potemkin. A few 
flattering promises were made to him by Count de Besbo- 
rodko, and he immediately began his ordinary practice of 
transmitting plans and projects, both diplomatic and military. 
While he hung on thus, vainly soliciting employment, the 
infamous conspiracy already alluded to was formed against 
his character and fortune, and threatening even his life, the 
object of which is easily traced, though the precise motives 
in which it originated, and the persons who imagined an in- 
terest in devising it, were never clearly ascertained, even by 
the persecuted individual himself. The information on this 
subject which he procured long afterwards, and which will 
be laid before the reader in the proper place, though plausible, 
is neither satisfactory nor supported by much evidence. In 
his future correspondence, Jones hints that he has reason to 
impute this most infamous proceeding, if not directly to En- 
glish influence, at least to the desire of propitiating the English 
26 



fl02 LETTER TO POTEMKIN. 

Dy the sacrifice of an individual so obnoxious as he knew 
himself to be to that nation.* 

To Russia, and Russians alone, however, belongs the entire 
infamy of a conspiracy to ruin a stranger who, it is enough 
to say, had incurred the displeasure of Potemkin. In every 
despotic court, but especially in that of St. Petersburgh, poli- 
tical intriguers will never want servile instruments to forward 
their basest and darkest purposes. In the present case 
mese instruments were found of all ranks, though but of one 
nation. 

The nature of this disgraceful affair, of which, but for the 
interference of Count Segur, and it might be from some 
latent dread of public opinion in France and America, Jones 
must have become the victim, will be sufficiently explained 
by the following letter, addressed to Prince Potemkin, after 
the unhappy writer had been forbidden to appear at court, 
and also by an extract which we shall give from the Memoirs 
cf Count Segur ; — 

Rear- Admiral "Paul Jones to Prince Potemkin. 

"St. Petersburgh, 13th April, 1789. 
" My Lord, — Having had the advantage to serve under 
your orders, and in your sight, I remember, with particular 
satisfaction, the kind promises and testimonies of your friend- 
ship with which you have honoured me. As I have served 
all my life for honour, I had no other motive for accepting 
the flattering invitation of her Imperial Majesty, than a lauda- 
ble ambition to distinguish myself in the service of a sove- 
reign so magnanimous and illustrious ; for I never yet have 
bent the knee to self-interest, nor drawn my sword for hire. 
A few days ago I thought myself one of the happiest men in 
the empire ! Your Highness had renewed to me your 

* It is admitted by recent English writers that Paul Jones was dismissed 
from the Russian service through English influence witli the Russian Court. — 
American Editor. 



^ LETTER TO POTEMK1N. 303 

promise of friendship, and the Empress had assigned me a 
command of a nature to occupy the most active and enter- 
prising genius. 

" A bad woman has accused me of violating her daughter ! 
If she had told the truth, I should have candour enough to 
own it, and would trust my honour, which is a thousand times 
dearer to me than my life, to the mercy of the Empress. I 
declare, with an assurance becoming a military character, 
that I am innocent. Till that unhappy moment, I have en- 
joyed the public esteem, and the affection of all who knew 
me. Shall it be said that in Russia a wretched woman, who 
eloped from her husband and family in the country, stole away 
her daughter, lives here in a house of bad fame, and leads a 
debauched and adulterous life, has found credit enough on a 
simple complaint, unsupported by any proof, to affect the 
honour of a general officer of reputation, who has merited 
and received the decorations of America, of France, and of 
this empire ! 

" If I had been favoured with the least intimation of a 
complaint of that nature having found its way to the Sove- 
reign, I know too well what belongs to delicacy to have pre- 
sented myself in the presence of the Empress before my 
justification. 

" My servant was kept prisoner by the officei s of police 
for several hours, two days successively, and threatened with 
the knout. 

" After the examination of my people before the police, I 
sent for and employed Monsieur Crimpin as my advocate. 
As the mother had addressed herself to him before to plead 
her cause, she naturally spoke to him without reserve, and he 
learned from her a number of important facts, among others, 
that she was counselled and supported by a distinguished man 
of the court. 

" By the certificate of the father, attested by the pastor of 
the colony, the daughter is several years older than is ex- 



304 LETTER TO POTEMKIN. 

pressor! in the complaint. And the complaint contains 
various other points equally false and easy to be refuted. 
For instance there is a conversation I am said to have held 
with the daughter in the Russian language, of which no per- 
son ever heard me pronounce two words together, — it is un- 
known to me. 

" I thought that in every country a man accused had a 
right to employ advocates, and to avail himself of his friends 
for his justification. Judge, my Prince, of my astonishment 
and distress of mind, when T yesterday was informed that the 
day before, the governor of the city had sent for my advo- 
cate, and forbidden him, at his peril, or any other person, to 
meddle with my cause ! 

" I am innocent before God ! and my conscience knows no 
reproach. The complaint brought against me is an infamous 
lie, and there is no circumstance that gives it even an air of 
probability. 

" I address myself to you with confidence, my Prince, and 
am assured that the friendship you have so kindly promised 
me will be immediately exerted in my favour ; and that you 
will not suffer the illustrious Sovereign of this great empire 
to be misled by the false insinuations and secret cabals of my 
hidden enemies. Your mind will find more true pleasure in 
pleading the cause of an innocent man whom you honour 
with your friendship, than can result from other victories 
equally glorious with that of Oczakow, which will always 
rank among the most brilliant of military achievements. If 
your Highness will condescend to question Monsieur Crimpin, 
(for he dare not now even speak to me,) he can tell you many 
circumstances which will elucidate my innocence. I am, 
with profound respect, my Lord, your Highness's devoted 
and most obedient servant," &c., &c. 

The document referred to in this letter appears quite 
satisfactory. It is a declaration by the husband of tha 
woman. 



CERTIFICATES. 305 

" I certify, that my wife, Fredrica Sophia Koltzwarthen, 
has left me without any reason ; that she has been living in 
the city with a young man ; and that she has clandestinely, 
and against my will, taken away my daughter Catheiine 
Charlotte, who is now living with her. 

" Stephen Koltzwarthen. 

" Saratowka, 7th April, 1789." 

" I certify, that this is the free and voluntary declaration of 
Stephen Koltzwarthen, and that it is he who has signed it. 

" G. Braun, Pastor\ 

•' Saratowka, 7th April, 1789." 

" I certify, that my daughter is twelve years of age. 

" Stephen Koltzwarthen. 

" Saratowka, 7th April, 1789." 

" I certify, that Stephen Koltzwarthen has signed what is 
above written. 

" G. Braun, Pastor." 

" Declaration of the Pastor Lamp of St. Petersburgh. 

" I certify, that the name of Koltzwarthen does not at pre- 
sent appear in the roll of those in the communion of the 
church, and that previous to the day when she came to 
my house about the affair of her daughter, I had never 
seen her. 

" J. Lamp, Pastor." 

The result of this letter to Potemkin does not appear ; and 
any further information concerning this affair must be sought 
in the Memoirs of Count Segur. It was peculiarly fortunate 
for Jones that this nobleman, a high-minded and generous in- 
dividual, of an honourable and a gallant nation, was at this 
time in Petersburgh. He at once came forward with warmth 
and intrepidity in defence of the persecuted stranger. 

" Paul Jones," he says, " a sharer in the victories of the 
Prince of Nassau, had returned to St. Petersburgh ; his 
26* 



306 GENEROSITY OF COUNT SEGUR. 

enemies, unable to bear the triumph of a man whom they 
treated as a vagabond, a rebel, and a corsair, resolved to 
destroy him. 

" This atrocity, which ought to be imputed to some envious 
cowards, was, I think, very unjustly attributed to the English 
officers in the Russian navy, and to the merchants who were 
their countrymen. These, in truth, did not disguise their 
animosity against Paul Jones ; but it would be unjust to affix 
upon all a base intrigue, which was, perhaps, but the work of 
two or three persons, who have continued unknown. 

" The American Rear- Admiral was favourably welcomed 
at Court; often invited to dinner by the Empress, and re- 
ceived with distinction into the best society in the city ; on a 
sudden, Catherine commanded him to appear no more in her 
presence. 

" He was informed that he was accused of an infamous 
crime ; of assaulting a young girl of fourteen, of grossly 
violating her ; and that probably, after some preliminary in- 
formation, he would be tried by the Courts of Admiralty, in 
which there were many English officers, who were strongly 
prejudiced against him. 

" As soon as this order was known, every one abandoned 
the unhappy American ; no one spoke to him, people avoided 
saluting him, and every door was shut against him. All those 
by whom but yesterday he had been eagerly welcomed, now 
fled from him as if he had been infected with a plague ; 
besides, no advocate would take charge of his cause, and no 
public man would consent to listen to him ; at last even his 
servants would not continue in his service ; and Paul Jones, 
whose exploits every one had so recently been ready to pro- 
claim, and whose friendship had been sought after, found him- 
self alone in the midst of an immense population : Petersburgh 
a great capital, became to him a desert. 

" I went to see him ; he was moved even to tears by my 
visit. * I was unwilling,' he said to me, shaking me by the 



INTRIGUE AGAINST JONES. 307 

hand, * to knock at your door, and to expose myself to a fresh 
affront, which would have been more cutting than all the rest. 
I have braved death a thousand times, now I wish for it.' His 
appearance, his arms being laid upon the table, made me 
suspect some desperate intention. 

" ' Resume,' I said to him, ' your composure and your 
courage. Do you not know that human life, like the sea, has. 
its storms, and that fortune is even more capricious than the 
winds? If, as I hope, you are innocent, brave this sudden 
tempest ; if, unhappily, you are guilty, confess it to me with 
unreserved frankness, and I will do everything I can to snatch 
you, by a sudden flight, from the danger which threatens you.' 

" ' I swear to you upon my honour,' said he, * that I am 
innocent, and a victim of the most infamous calumny. This 
is the truth. — Some days since a young girl came to me in the 
morning, to ask me if I could give her some linen or lace to 
mend. She then indulged in some rather earnest and indecent 
allurements. Astonished at so much boldness in one of such 
few years, I felt compassion for her ; I advised her not to 
enter upon so vile a career, gave her some money, and dis- 
missed her ; but she was determined to remain. 

" ' Impatient at this resistance, I took her by the hand and 
led her to the door ; but, at the instant when the door was 
opened, the little profligate tore her sleeves and her neck-ker- 
chief, raised great cries, complained that I had assaulted her, 
and threw herself into the arms of an old woman, whom she 
called her mother, and who, certainly, was not brought there 
by chance. The mother and the daughter raised the house 
with their cries, went out and denounced me ; and now you 
know all.' 

"'Very well,' I said, 'but cannot you learn the names of 
those adventurers V ' The porter knows them/ he replied. 
■ Here are their names written down, but I do not know where 
Jhey live. I was desirous of immediately presenting a me- 
morial about this ridiculous affair, first to the ministry, and 









308 INTRIGUE AGAINST JONES, 

then to the Empress; but I have been interdicted from access 
to both of them/ * Give me the paper,' I said; 'resume your 
accustomed firmness; — be comforted; — let me undertake it; 
— in a short time we shall meet again.' 

" As soon as I had returned home, I directed some sharp 
and intelligent agents, who were devoted to me, to get infor- 
mation respecting these suspected females, and to find out 
what was their mode of life. I was not long in learning that 
the old woman was in the habit of carrying on a vile traffic 
in young girls, whom she passed off as her daughters. 

"When I was furnished with all the documents and attesta- 
tions for which I had occasion, I hastened to show them to 
Paul Jones. « You have nothing more to fear,' said I ; 'the 
wretches are unmasked. It is only necessary to open the 
eyes of the Empress, and let her see how unworthily she has 
been deceived ; but this is not so very easy : truth encounters 
a multitude of people at the doors of a palace, who are very 
clever in arresting its progress ; and sealed letters are, of all 
others, those which are intercepted with the greatest art and 
care. 

" ' Nevertheless, I know that the Empress, who is not igno- 
rant of this, has directed, under very heavy penalties, that no 
one shall detain on the way any letters which are addressed 
to her personally, and which may be sent to her by post ; 
therefore, here is a very long letter which I have written to 
her in your name ; nothing of the detail is omitted, although 
it contains some rough expressions. I am sorry for the Em- 
press ; but since she heard and gave credit to a calumny, it 
is but right that she should read the justification with patience. 
Copy this letter, sign it, and I will take charge of it ; I will 
send some one to put it in the post at the nearest town. Take 
courage ; believe me, your triumph is not doubtful.' 

" In fact, the letter was sent and put in the post ; the Em- 
oress received it; and, after having read this memorial, which 
was fully explanatory, and accompanied by undeniable attes* 



INTRIGUE DEFEATED. 309 

tations, she inveighed bitterly against the informers,, revoked 
her rigorous orders, recalled Paul Jones to court, and received 
him with her usual kindness. 

" That brave seaman enjoyed with a becoming pride a re- 
paration which was due to him ; but he trusted very little to 
the compliments that were unblushingly heaped upon him by 
the many persons who had fled from him in his disgrace ; and 
shortly afterwards, disgusted with a country where the for- 
tune of a man may be exposed to such humiliations, under the 
pretence of ill health, he asked leave of the Empress to retire, 
which she granted him, as well as an honourable order and a 
suitable pension. 

" He took leave, after having expressed to me his gratitude 
for the service which I had rendered him ; and his respect for 
the Sovereign, who, although she might be led into an error, 
knew at least how to make an honourable reparation for a 
fault and an act of injustice." 

This account is substantially correct. There are some 
petty errors of detail, but nothing whatever to detract from 
the noble spirit of generosity in which Count Segur acted to 
an unfortunate and ill-treated man. 

A letter to the Empress, which is still among those papers 
of Paul Jones which he so carefully collected and preserved, 
cannot be that alluded to by Count Segur ; it has every internal 
mark of his own authorship ; and as it is one of his pieces 
justificatives, we are inclined to believe it the letter really sent 
to the Empress : — 

(Translation.) 
" Letter of Rear-Admiral Paul Jones to the Empress of all the Russian 

" St. Petersburgh, 17th May, 1789. 

" Madam, — I have never served but for honour, I have 
never sought but glory, and I believed I was in the way of 
obtaining both, when, accepting the offers made me on the 



810 LETTER TO HIE EMPRESS. 




Catherine II. 



part of your Majesty, I entered your service. I was in Ame- 
rica when M. de Simolin, through Mr. Jefferson, Minister of 
the United States at Paris, proposed to me, in name of your 
Majesty, to take the chief command of the forces in the 
Black Sea, which were intended to act against the Turks. I 
abandoned my dearest interests to accept an invitation so 
flattering, and I would have reached you instantly if the 
United States had not intrusted me with a special commission 
to Denmark. Of this I acquitted myself faithfully and 
promptly." Here follows a detail of that singular voyage 
performed by the Chevalier in his haste and zeal to reach St. 
Petersburgh, with the particulars of which the reader is 
a 1 read v acquainted. We pass this, and resume: — " The dis- 



LETTER TO THE EMPRESS. 311 

anguished reception which your Majesty deigned to grant me, 
the kindness with which you loaded me, indemnified me for 
the dangers to which I had exposed myself for your service, 
and inspired me with the most ardent desire to encounter 
more. But knowing mankind, and aware that those persons 
whom their superiors distinguish and protect are ever the 
objects of jealousy and envy to the worthless, I entreated 
your Majesty never to condemn me unheard. -You con- 
descended to give me that promise, and I set out with a mind 
as tranquil as my heart was satisfied. 

"In the ports of the Black Sea I found affairs in a very 
critical condition. The most imminent danger threatened us, 
and our means were feeble. Nevertheless, supported by the 
love which all your subjects bear to your Majesty, by their 
courage, by the ability and foresight of the chief who led us, 
and by the Providence which has always favoured the arms 
of your Majesty, we beat your enemies, and your flag was 
covered with fresh laurels. 

" I would not notice, Madam, what I then achieved, if 
Prince Potemkin had not distinguished my services by 
reiterated thanks, both in speech and writing ; and if your 
Majesty, informed by the Prince-Marshal of my conduct in 
the first affair which took place on the Liman* had not in- 
vested me with the honourable badge of the Order of St. 
Anne. Since that period, though I have been hampered by 
limited orders, I have committed no professional error ; I 
have often exposed myself to personal danger, and I have 
even stooped to sacrifice my personal feelings and interests 
to my devotion for the good of the service. 

" At the close of the campaign I received orders to return 
to court, as your Majesty intended to employ me in the North 
Seas, and I brought with me a letter from Prince Potemkin 
for your Majesty, in which he mentioned my zeal and the 
importance of my services. 1 had the honour to present it, 
and M. le Comte de Besborodko acquainted me that a com- 



312 LETTER TO THE EMPRESS. 

mand of greater importance than that of the Black Sea, and 
affording full scope for the display of talent and intelligence, 
was intended for me. Such was my situation, when, upon 
the mere accusation of a crime, the very idea of which 
wounds my delicacy, I was driven from court, deprived of 
the good opinion of your Majesty, and forced to employ the 
time which I wish to devote to the defence of your empire in 
clearing myself from the stains with which calumny had 
covered me. 

" Condescend to believe, Madam, that if I had got the 
slightest hint that a complaint of such a nature had been 
made against me, and still more that it had reached your 
Majesty, I know too well what is owing to delicacy to have 
ventured to appear before you till I was completely ex-., 
culpated. 

" Knowing neither the laws, the language, nor the forms 
of justice of this country, I needed an advocate, and ob- 
tained one ; but, whether from terror or intimidation, he stopt 
short all at once, and durst not undertake my defence, though 
convinced of the justice of my cause. But truth may always 
venture to show itself alone and unsupported at the foot of 
the throne of your Majesty. I have not hesitated to labour 
unaided for my own vindication ; I have attested proofs ; and 
if such details may appear under the eyes of your Majesty, 
I present them, and if your Majesty will deign to order some 
person to examine them, it will be seen by the report which 
will be made, that my crime is a fiction, invented by the 
avarice of a wretched woman, who has been countenanced, 
perhaps incited, by the malice of my numerous enemies. 
Her husband has given evidence of her infamous conduct. 
His signature is in my hands, and the pastor of the district 
has assured me, that if the college of justice will give him an 
order to this effect, he will obtain an attestation from the 
country people that the mother of the girl referred to is a 
wretch absolutely unworthy of belief. 



LETTER TO THE EMPRESS. 313 

" Take a soldier's word, Madam ; believe an officer whom 
two great nations esteem, and who has been honoured with 
flattering marks of their approbation, (of which your Majesty 
will soon receive a direct proof from the United States,*) I 
am innocent ! and if I were guilty, I would not hesitate to 
make a candid avowal of my fault, and to commit my honour, 
which is a thousand times dearer to me than my life, to the 
hands of your Majesty. 

"If you deign, Madam, to give heed to this declaration, 
proceeding from a heart the most frank and loyal, I venture 
from your justice to expect that my zeal will not remain 
longer in shameful and humiliating inaction. It has been 
useful to your Majesty, and may again be so, especially in the 
Mediterranean, where, with insignificant means, I will under- 
take to execute most important operations, the plans for which 
I have meditated long and deeply. But if circumstances, of 
which I am ignorant, do not admit the possibility of my being 
employed during the campaign, I hope your Majesty will 
give me permission to return to France or America, granting, 
as the sole reward of the services I have rendered, the hope 
of renewing them at some future day. 

" Nothing can ever change or efface in my heart the deep 

feelings of devotedness with which your Majesty has inspired 

me. 

" To you, Madam, I am personally devoted. I would 

rather have my head struck off than see those ties broken 
asunder which bind me to your service. At the feet of your 
Majesty I swear to be ever faithful to you, as well as to the 
empire, of which you form the happiness, the ornament, and 
the glory. — I am, 

With the most profound respect, 

Madam, &c." 

There are, as was said, several important mistakes, though 



* Referring to the medal ordered to be struck by Congress. 
27 



314 DIPLOMACY. 

no wilful misrepresentation whatever, in the details given by 
Count Segur. Though Jones was so far exculpated as to be 
permitted to appear again at court, it was merely for the cere- 
mony of taking leave of the Empress and royal family, when 
he had, as will appear, been virtually dismissed from Russia 
The Order of St. Anne, to which Segur refers, he had obtained 
long before. So far was he from receiving any pension from 
Russia, that his small appointments were tardily paid, and not 
till after repeated solicitation. Instead of being loaded " with 
compliments," he was treated while he continued to hang on 
in the hope of employment, first with the most chilling neglect, 
and afterwards with repulsive rudeness. Besborodko, the 
favourite minister of Catherine, who, on his coming to Russia, 
had overwhelmed the Rear-Admiral with kindness, shut his' 
doors in the face of the supernumerary officer, and did not 
affect to disguise his weariness and disgust of the applausive 
recapitulations of past services and projects for future mari- 
time achievements with which he continued to be annoyed 
by the man whose day was gone by. The alleged crime of 
the Rear- Admiral, had his guilt even been established, would, 
we are apt to think, have been no insurmountable barrW to 
his success in Russia, had a continuance of his servicer been 
wished for ; nor was his innocence found any recommenda- 
tion. The Empress may have expressed herself in the terms 
stated by Count Segur, but this as certainly produced no 
favourable change in the position of the party so grossly in- 
jured. His correspondence with Besborodko, after this affair 
had been closed up, shows the real nature of his situation, and 
affords a painful and humiliating picture of the dying struggles 
of ambition. 

To strengthen his interests in Russia, Paul Jones at this 
time endeavoured to bring into play a little diplomatic in- 
fluence, knowing the avidity with which that grasping and 
ambitious power caught at every appearance of advantage. 
He had written thus to Mr. Jefferson soon after his return 



LETTER TO THE MINISTER. 315 

from the Li man : — " I can only inform you that I returned 
j here by the special desire of the Empress, but I know not as 
yet how or where I am to be employed for the next campaign. 
1 mentioned in my last, as my opinion, that if the new 
government of America determines to chastise the Algerines, 
I think it now a favourable moment to conclude a treaty with 
Russia. The Turks and Algerines were combined against us 
on the Black Sea. The United States could grant leave for 
Russia to enlist American seamen, and, making a common 
cause with Russia in the Mediterranean, might at the peace 
obtain a free navigation from and to the Black Sea. Such a 
connexion might lead to various advantages in the commerce 
between the two nations." 

Whether Mr. Jefferson thought the Admiral too desirous 
of cutting out work for himself, or that he rather stepped out 
of his department in interfering in such affairs, his hints appear 
to have met with the return to which he was well accustomed 
— neglect, — neglect which might have repelled a haughtier 
spirit, and which, in many instances, was keenly felt by him, 
without, however, deterring him from renewed attempts to 
bring himself by every possible means into notice. 

He waited for some weeks after his character was cleared 
at court before he sent the minister the following letters, which 
were formerly alluded to : — 

" To his Excellency Count Besborodko from Rear-Admiral Paul Jones. 

"St. Petersburgh, 24th June, 1789. 

" Sir, — When I had the honour to see your Excellency 
last week, I ventured to promise myself that in two days I 
would be made acquainted with the ulterior intention of her 
Majesty, whether this was to give me a command, or a tem- 
porary leave of absence. No doubt important affairs have 
occasioned the delay. You will, I hope, have the goodness 
to permit me to present myself at your hotel to-morrow after 



316 LETTER TO THE MINISTER. 

noon ; for if it is thought fit to employ my services, there U 
no time to lose, seeing the advance of the season. 

"The detachment of vessels of which your Excellency spoke 
to me might probably be most useful in the operations which 
I have projected ; but, at the same time, I regard the plan 
mentioned in the private note which I have sent you as very 
useful. I would then wish (if circumstances permitted) to 
combine these plans ; and then I think there would be reason 
to be satisfied with the result. 

" I have mentioned to your Excellency that I am the only 
officer who made the campaign of the Liman without being 
promoted ; but I beseech you to believe that I have not ac- 
cepted of service in Russia to occasion embarrassment ; and 
since the Empress had given me her esteem and her confix 
dence, I wish for nothing save new opportunities to prove my 
devotion by fresh services.' , 

This letter elicited no reply, and produced no improvement 
in the situation of the applicant, save that the leave of absence 
at which he hinted, though it was the last thing he wished for, 
was at once accorded, there being evidently an anxious wish 
to be rid of himself, his projects, and importunities. The sub- 
joined letter, written soon afterwards, may teach a lesson of 
contentment, and even of cheerful gratitude, to those persons, 
if such there be, who, in their ignorance of public life, may 
envy the brilliant fortunes of a successful warrior under the 
patronage of a despotic sovereign. 

" Rear-Admiral Paul Jones to Count de Besborodko. 

" St. Petersburgh, 14th July, 1789. 

" Sir, — I presented myself at your hotel the day before 
yesterday, to take leave, and, at the same time, to entreat of 
you to expedite my commission, my passport, and the leave 
of absence which her Majesty has thought fit to grant me. 
Though I have perceived on several former occasions that 
you have shunned giving me any opportunity to speak with 



LETTER TO THE MINISTER. 317 

you, I made myself certain that this could not occur at a last 
interview ; and I confess I was very much surprised to see 
you go out by another door, and depart without a single ex- 
pression of ordinary civility addressed to me at the moment 
of my leaving Russia, to console me for all the bitter morti- 
fications I have endured in this empire. Before coming to 
Russia I had been connected with several governments, and 
no minister ever either refused me an audience, or failed to 
reply to my letters. 

" After the eagerness with which my services were sought, 
and the fair promises that were made me, I had reason to 
believe that I would find in Russia everything pleasant and 
agreeable. I was confirmed in this belief from the essential 
services which I had the good fortune to render the empire. 
I am aware that your Excellency is sometimes teased by im- 
portunate persons, but, as I am a man of delicacy in every- 
thing, I deserve to be distinguished from the common herd. 

" On the 6th of June, the last time you gave me an oppor- 
tunity of speaking with you, I gave you a confidential note, 
containing the details of a plan by which, without inter- 
fering with any other project, and with the utmost economy, 
great service might be done to Russia. You promised to 
submit it to the Empress ; and you yourself proposed to place 
a detachment of vessels under my command, to serve during 
the existing campaign in the Black Sea, and afterwards in the 
Mediterranean. I could not have imagined that these plans 
were so carelessly to be thrown aside ; and, in place of dis- 
cussing and arranging them with you, I was very much as- 
tonished when his Excellency the Count de Bruce announced 
to me that the Empress had granted me a leave of two years. 

" On the 1st of February I gave in, by order of his Excel- 
lency, Count Ostermann, the plan of a treaty, political and 
commercial, between Russia and the United States. As the 
Vice-Chancellor spoke to me of going to America about this 
purpose, and as I shall soon again be connected with my old 
27* 



318 AUDIENCE OF LEAVE. 

friends who constitute the present government of the United 
States, I would be extremely happy to learn, through your 
Excellency, the intentions of her Imperial Majesty in this 
respect, and to be appointed to forward an alliance by which 
Russia must gain. 

" The United States having concluded a treaty of friend- 
ship and commerce with the Emperor of Morocco, are about 
to propose to the different- powers of Europe a war with the 
other Barbary states, and to form a confederation against 
these pirates, till they shall be annihilated as maritime powers. 
It is proposed, that even the event of a war between the con- 
tracting parties shall not disturb the confederation. It would 
be worthy of the august Sovereign of this empire to place 
herself at the head of an alliance so honourable, and of which 
the consequences must be so useful to Russia. It would give 
me peculiar satisfaction if your Excellency thought fit to ap- 
point me to make known the intentions of the Empress to the 
United States on these two points, and I trust I should 
be able to acquit myself of so honourable a duty to your 
contentment. 

" I have the honour to be, with sincere attachment and high 
consideration," &c, &c. 

His Excellency did not " think fit" to make the solicited ap- 
pointment. 

The Rear- Admiral, as unfortunate in his attempts to obtain 
a diplomatic mission as a naval command, was now obliged 
to turn his back on Russia, and devour his chagrin and dis- 
appointment as he best could. He had, however, the honour 
of an audience of leave, though he found considerable diffi- 
culty in obtaining his pay and arrears. " When," he says in a 
letter to M. Genet, " the Count de Bruce sent for me on the 
27th June," (two days only after his letter to Besborodko,) 
M he told me, on the part of the Empress, that her Imperial 
Majesty had granted me a leave for two years, with the ap- 
pointments belonging to my military rank during my absence. 



COUNT SEGUR'S LETTER. 319 

The Count de Besborodko wrote me, 30th July, informing me 
that M. de Strekalow had received her Majesty's orders with 
respect to my appointments and arrearages. I have not been 
able to see M. de Strekalow, though I have called frequently 
at the cabinet. I have only received my appointments from 
the time of my entry into the service to the 1st of July, at the 
rate of 1800 roubles* a-year ; and I was told yesterday at the 
cabinet, that her Majesty likewise mentions nothing but the 
appointments then due. If I could believe that this was her 
Majesty's intention I should remain silent ; for I certainly did 
not accept the service her Majesty offered me on account of 
my appointments or the usual emoluments of my grade." 

He was satisfied in this respect, and thus left St. Peters- 
burgh. 

The reader, in possession of the real circumstances attending 
the departure of Paul Jones from Russia, will be able to esti- 
mate aright the following letter and paragraph, put forth from 
the kindest motives by Count de Segur, immediately before 
the Rear-Admiral left that country : — 

Count de Segur to Count Montmorin. 

"St. Petersburgh, 21st July, 1789. 
" The enemies of the Vice- Admiral Paul Jones having 
caused to be circulated reports entirely destitute of foundation, 
concerning the journey which this general officer is about to 
undertake, I would wish the enclosed article, the authenticity 
of which I guarantee, should be inserted in the Gazette of 
France, and in the other public papers which are submitted 
to the inspection of your department. This article will unde- 
ceive those who have believed the calumny, and will prove to 
the friends and to the compatriots of the Vice-Admiral, that 
he has sustained the reputation acquired by his bravery and 
his talents during the last war ; that the Empress desires to 

* A rouble was in 1789 worth about four shillings English money. 



320 Jones leaves st. petersrurgh. 

retain him in her service ; and that if he absents himself at 
this moment, it is with his own free-will, and for particular 
reasons, which cannot leave any stain on his honour. 

" The glorious marks of the satisfaction and bounty of the 
King towards M. Paul Jones, his attachment to France, which 
he has served so usefully in the common cause, his rights as 
a subject and as an admiral of the United States, the protec- 
tion of the ministers of the King and my personal friendship 
for this distinguished officer, with whom I made a campaign 
in America, are so many reasons which appear to me to jus- 
tify the interest which I took in all that concerned him during 
his stay in Russia. 

" The Count de Segur." 

" Article to be inserted in the Public Prints, and particularly in the Gazette 

of France. 

" St. Petersburgh, 21st July, 1789.— The Vice-Admiral Paul 
Jones being on the point of returning to France, where private 
affairs require his presence, had the honour to take leave of 
the Empress the 7th of this month, and to be admitted to kiss 
the hand of her Imperial Majesty, * who confided to him the 
command of her vessels of war stationed on the Liman during 
the campaign of 1788. As a mark of favour for his conduct 
during this campaign, the Empress has decorated him with 
the insignia of the order of St. Anne ; and her Imperial 
Majesty, satisfied with his services, only grants him permission 
to absent himself for a limited time, and still preserves for 
him his emoluments and his rank." 

This was putting the best face on the affair ; and the par- 
agraph appeared in the Gazette of France, and in many other 
journals. 

Early in September Jones left St. Petersburgh for Warsaw, 

* " This general officer, so celebrated by his brilliant actions during the 
•ourse of the American war, was called, in 1787, to the service of her Impe- 
rial Majesty," — Note to the Newspaper Paragraph. 



M. DE GENET'S CONDUCT. 32] 

furnished with letters of introduction, explanation, and vindi- 
cation, from the Count de Segur to different individuals, all 
written in the same generous spirit as the above. The kind- 
ness of Count Segur to a man placed in a situation generally 
so fatal to court-friendships does him great honour. His 
original letters still remain among the papers of the Rear- Ad- 
miral, who, however, transmitted copies of them to many of 
his friends. Count Segur was not the only Frenchman who 
sustained the calumniated stranger under the base attempts 
of his enemies. M. de Genet, the younger, was at this time 
the secretary of legation at St. Petersburgh. Paul Jones, at 
a former period, had been intimate with the father and 
family of this gentleman at Versailles, and the young French- 
man did not now forget his father's former friend. M. de 
Genet undertook the arrangement of his pecuniary affairs 
with the Russian government, and gave him a letter to his 
sister, the celebrated Madame Campan, explaining the 
atrocious slanders propagated in St. Petersburgh, and placing 
the innocence of the calumniated individual beyond all 
suspicion. This original letter also remains among the papers 
of the Rear-Admiral. It was some months before he re- 
turned to Paris, and he might then have felt reluctant to 
revive the recollection of a charge so disgusting as to make 
the task of vindication both humiliating and painful to a mind 
of any delicacy. 

In 1791, in writing from Paris to Mr. Jefferson, then in 
America, Jones gives the following clue to the mystery of his 
treatment in Russia. " Chevalier Littlepage, now here on 
his way from Spain to the north, has promised me a letter to 
you on my subject, which I presume will show you the mean- 
ness and absurdity of the intrigues that were practised for 
my persecution at St. Petersburgh. I did not myself com- 
prehend all the blackness of that business till he came here, 
and related to me the information he received from a gentle 
man of high rank in the diplomatic department, with whom 



322 LETTER TO JEFFERSON. 

he had travelled in company from Madrid to Paris. That 
gentleman had long resided in a public character at St. 
Petersburgh, and was there all the time of the pitiful complot 
against me, which was conducted by a little great man be 
hind the curtain. The unequalled reception with which I 
had at first been honoured by the Empress had been ex- 
tremely mortifying and painful to the English at St. Peters- 
burgh ; and the courtier just mentioned, (finding that politics 
had taken a turn far more alarming than he had expected at 
the beginning of the war,^ wishing to soothe the Court of 
London into a pacific humour, found no first step so expedient 
as that of sacrificing me. But, instead of producing the 
effect he wished, this base conduct, on which he pretended to 
ground a conciliation, rather tended to widen the political- 
breach, and made him despised by the English minister, by 
the English cabinet, and by the gentleman who related the 
secret to Mr. Littlepage." The letter of Mr. Littlepage, 
transmitted to Mr. Jefferson along with the above, in part 
confirms this solution of an intrigue, so essentially Rus- 
sian. Yet there remains some secret cause and move- 
ment which it is impossible to fathom. " The campaign 
upon the Liman," says Chevalier Littlepage, " added lustre 
to the arms of Russia, and ought to have established for 
ever the reputation and fortune of the gallant officer to whose 
conduct those successes were owing." (Littlepage attributes 
to the Rear- Admiral the entire success of the campaign of 
1788 ; not, like Count Segur, dividing his laurels with Nas- 
sau; and it is to be remembered, that Littlepage was an eye 
witness of an important part of it.) " Unfortunately," he 
continues, " in Russia, more perhaps than elsewhere, every- 
thing is governed by intrigue. Some political motives, I 
have reason to think, concurred in depriving Rear-Admiral 
Paul Jones of the fruits of his service ; he was thought to 
be particularly obnoxious to the English nation, and the idea 
of pa3'ing a servile compliment to a power whose emnity oc- 



JONES AT WARSAW. 323 

casions all the present embarrassments of Russia induced 
some leading persons to ruin him, in the opinion of the Em- 
press, by an accusation too ridiculous to be mentioned." 

On leaving Warsaw, it was the intention of Paul Jones to 
return to France by Copenhagen and Berlin ; but, as it was 
known that he had left Russia dissatisfied, he deemed it best 
to avoid all farther occasion of giving his enemies any handle 
against him, and accordingly kept away from places where it 
might be presumed that he was tempted to tell tales, or utter 
complaints. 

Disgrace at Petersburgh did not at this juncture imply a 
cold reception at Warsaw ; and in this capital — soon to be a 
capital no more — Jones was well received, and remained for 
two months. From Warsaw he despatched the Journal of 
his American Campaigns for the perusal of the Empress, and 
also an abridgment of the Journal of his Campaign on the 
Liman. Her Imperial Majesty had, it seems, at some former 
period, civilly expressed a desire to see his Journal of the 
American war. The old spirit was not yet quite subdued. 
" I have added," he says, " some testimonies of the high and 
unanimous consideration of the United States, and of the pri- 
vate esteem with which I was honoured by several great men 
to whom I am perfectly known, such as M. Malsherbes and the 
Count d'Estaing of France, and Mr. Morris, minister of the 
American marine. I owe to my own reputation and to truth, 
to accompany this Journal with an abridgment of that of 
the campaign of the Liman. If you, Madam, read it with 
attention, you will see how little I have deserved the mortifi- 
cations I have suffered, — mortifications which the justice and 
goodness of your Majesty can alone make me forget. 

" As I never offended in word or thought against the laws 
of the strictest delicacy, it would assuredly be most desirable 
to me to have the happiness of regaining, in spite of the 
malice of my enemies, the precious esteem of your Majesty. 
I would have taken leave with a heart fully satisfied, had I 



324 LETTER TO THE EMPRESS. 

been sent to fight the enemies of the Empress, instead of oc- 
cupying myself with my own private affairs. 

" Trusting entirely on the gracious promise that your Ma- 
jesty gave me, ' never to condemn me without a hearing,' and 
being devoted to you, heart and soul, 

" I am with profound respect," &c. &c. 

To ensure the Journal reaching the hands of the Empress, 
this postscript is added to the above loyal effusion: — " I shall 
have the honour of sending the Journal by the courier of Wed- 
nesday next, with the proofs of every separate article. It will 
be sealed with my arms, and addressed to your Majesty, and 
sent under a second cover, to the address of M. de Chrapo- 
witzky." With all these precautions he feared that his Jour-, 
nal was intercepted, as it contained such " damning proofs 
against his enemies." 



LETTER TO KOSCIUSKO. 



325 



CHAPTER XII. 

URING his stay in Warsaw, 
Paul Jones became known to 
the celebrated Kosciusko. On 
leaving Poland he sent a fare- 
well note to this noble patriot 
and determined hater of Rus- 
sia, which was followed by a 
rather singular correspondence. 
Sweden was at this time in the 
heat of war, and it had been 
rumoured that the discontented American, who had for a brief 
space prided himself on being a Russian officer, was now 
ready to take service with Gustavus III. This report was 
one reason for Jones avoiding the route of Copenhagen on his 
way to Holland, and choosing rather to go by Vienna. 




" Rear-Admiral Paul Jones to Major General Kosciusko. 

Warsaw, November 2d, 1789. 
" My dear General, — I intend to set out this day for Vienna, 
where I shall only stop a few days. I shall then go to 
Strasburgh, and from thence to Holland, where I expect to 
arrive before the 1st of December. My address in Holland 
is under cover to Messieurs Nic. and Jacob Stophorst, Am- 
sterdam. 

"As I shall be in relation with our friends in America, 
I shall not fail to mention on all occasions the honourable 
employment and the respect you have attained in your own 
28 



320 



LETTER TO KOSCIUSKO. 




Kosciusko. 



country, and the great regard you retain for the natives of 
America, where your character is esteemed, and your name 
justly beloved for your services. — I am," &c. 



KOSCIUSKO'S ANSWER. 327 

The .etter of General Kosciusko* is written in English, a 
language which he wrote but imperfectly. The original or- 
thography is retained. 

" General Kosciusko to Rear -Admiral Paul Jones, Amsterdam. 

"Warsaw, 15th February, 1790. 

" My dear. Sir, — I had the honour to write you the 1st or 
3d of February. I do not recollect ; but I gave you the in- 
formation to apply to the minister of Sweden at the Hague, 
for the propositions (according to what M. D'Engestrom told 
me) they both had order to communicate you. I wish with 
all my heart that could answer your expectation. I am totaly 

* Thaddeus Kosciusko was a native of Poland, and of good birth. He was 
educated at the Cadet-School of Warsaw, and was one of four pupils annually- 
chosen by the king, and sent to complete their military studies in France or 
Germany. He was instructed at the Military Academy of Versailles, and ac 
quired a thorough knowledge of every department of military science, particu- 
larly engineering. It is related, that on returning home he fell desperately in 
love with a young lady, who eloped with him. The lovers were pursued and 
overtaken before they could pass the frontiers of Poland ; and as Kosciusko 
could only retain his mistress by killing her father, he resigned her. In con- 
sequence, it is said, of this adventure, but more probably from the love of em- 
ployment and distinction, the young Pole went to America, and was appointed by 
General Washington one of his aides-de-camp. He continued there till the end 
of the war. The part he afterwards acted in his native country is well known. 
In the battle in which he was made prisoner, he had three horses killed under 
him, and was captured as he fell wounded from the last. He was kept in a 
Russian dungeon till the death of the Empress Catherine, and only liberated 
by Paul at his accession. He afterwards visited America and England, and 
was received with the highest distinction. When Bonaparte entered Poland 
he fried to move the nation by a proclamation issued in the name of the pa- 
triot chief; but Kosciusko disowned it, and refused to have any alliance either 
with the French conqueror or with the Russian Emperor, Alexander. " He 
lived," says his biographer, " in proud independence, superior to fortune and to 
kings." His latter years were passed at Soleure, where he distinguished him- 
self by generosity to the poor. He possessed a highly-cultivated mind, and was 
passionately fond of poetry, particularly the works of the English poets, with 
which he became well acquainted. He died in October 1817, in the 65th 
j ear of his age. 



328 LETTER TO KOSCIUSKO, 

ignorant what they are ; but I could see you to fight against 
the opression and tyranny. Give me news of everything. 
— I am, dear Sir, 

" Your most humble and most 
" obedient servant, 

" J. Kosciusko, G. M." 
" Write me, if you please, who is minister from America 
at Paris : I want to know his name." 

In answer to this letter Jones wrote from Amsterdam in 
the following month : — 

"My dear Sir, — The letter you did me the honour to 
write me the 2d February, was delivered to my bankers here, 
by a man who demanded from them a receipt. I was then 
at the Hague, and your letter was transmitted to me. On 
my return here, some days ago, I found another letter from 
you of the 15th February. This letter had, by the same 
man, been put into the hands of my bankers. You propose, 
if I am not mistaken, that I should apply to a gentleman at 
the Hague, who has something to communicate to me. But 
a moment's reflection will convince you that considerations 
of what I owe to myself, as well as the delicacy of my situa- 
tion, do not permit me to take such a step. If that gentleman 
has anything to communicate to me, he can either do it by 
writing, by desiring a personal conference, or by the media- 
tion of a third person. I have shown your letter to my 
bankers, and they have said this much to the gentleman from 
whom they received it ; but this message, they say, he re- 
ceived with an air of indifference." 

Thus terminated the enigmatical correspondence between 
Paul Jones and the illustrious Pole. Reckoning a little on the 
disinterested love of freedom, common to all Americans, 
and somewhat more, probably, on the avowed discontent 
of the Rear-Admiral, Kosciusko may have wished to draw 
him into some of those daring schemes with which hi& 



JONES'S LETTERS. 329 

own mind, on the highest and purest motives, was now 
anxiously occupied. But the lingering hope and ardent desire 
of being again recalled to serve in Russia, cherished in spite 
of all he had seen and suffered, had not yet left the mind of 
Jones. To this delusive hope he indeed clung, to the very 
close of his life. Prudence, besides, forbade a negotiation of 
so mysterious and suspicious a kind; and there was both 
honesty and discretion in avoiding it. 

While in Holland, Jones wrote many letters to different 
quarters, desirous to re-establish himself in the good opinion 
of some old friends, and to revive himself in the memory of 
others from whom he had been estranged during his Russian 
bondage, or splendid exile, — for it may be called indifferently 
by either name. His letters about this time exhibit a curious 
struggle between the desire of domestic peace and the am- 
bition of again launching into the heady current of public life. 
He appears at a loss what plan to pursue, whether to purchase 
a small estate in America, and seek the enjoyments of that 
tranquil life which in reality possessed no charms for him ; to 
marry a rich wife, or to drag on an existence in the longing, 
lingering hope of being recalled to Russia. His letters reflect 
the exact complexion of his thoughts, disturbed, broken, and 
changeful. 

He, however, once more felt in security, and gave his pen 
such scope, that innumerable letters bear date at the Hague 
or Amsterdam, between December 1789, and March 1790. 

A selection from the important part of his copious corres- 
pondence at this period must be more satisfactory to the reader 
than any detail we can give; his letters of a private kind 
written at this time are reserved for the limited portion of 
this memoir devoted to the domestic history of its subject 
28* 



330 



LETTER TO WASHINGTON. 




Washington. 



"Rear-Admiral PaulJones to General Washington, President of the 
United States. 

" Amsterdam, December 20, 1789. 
" Sir, — I avail myself of the departure of the Philadelphia 
packet, Captain Earle, to transmit to your Excellency a letter 
I received for you on leaving Russia in August last, from my 
fiiend, the Count de Segur, minister of France at St. Peters- 
burgh. That gentleman and myself have frequently conversed 
on subjects that regard America ; and the most pleasing re- 
flection of all has been, the happy establishment of the new- 
constitution, and that you are so deservedly placed at the 
head of the government by the unanimous voice of America. 
Your name alone, Sir, has established in Europe a confidence 



LETTER TO MR. ROSS. 331 

that was for some time before entirely wanting in American 
concerns ; and I am assured, that the happy effects of your 
administration are still more sensibly felt throughout the 
United States. This is more glorious for you than all the 
laurels that your sword so nobly won in support of the rights 
of human nature. In war your fame is immortal as the hero 
of Liberty ! In peace you are her patron, and the firmest sup- 
porter of her rights ! Your greatest admirers, and even your 
best friends, have now but one wish left for you, — that you 
may long enjoy health and your present happiness. 

" Mr. Jefferson can inform you respecting my mission to 
the court of Denmark. I was received and treated there with 
marked politeness ; and if the fine icords I received are true, 
the business will soon be settled. I own, however, that I 
should have stronger hopes if America had created a respecta- 
ble marine ; for that argument would give weight to every 
transaction with Europe. I acquitted myself of the commis- 
sion with which you honoured me when last in America, by 
delivering your letters with my own hands at Paris to the 
persons to whom they were addressed." 

He also wrote Franklin and Mr. Ross. Both of these let- 
ters have interest. 

"Amsterdam, December 27, 1789. 

" Dear Sir, — I beg leave to refer you to Doctor Franklin 
or to General St. Clair for an explanation of my reasons for 
having left Russia. I have by this opportunity sent to those 
gentlemen testimonies in French that cannot fail to justify me 
in the eyes of my friends in America. 

" You have no doubt been informed, perhaps by Mr. 
Parish, of the unhandsome conduct of Le Conteulex and Co. 
with regard to' the letter of credit you gave me on them 
when I was last in America for six thousand livres. As I 
was landed in England instead of France, I went to London 
to make an arrangement with Dr. Bancroft for supplying the 



332 LETTER TO FRANKLIN. 

expense of my mission to Denmark. He promised to place 
funds for my use at Amsterdam. I went to Paris, and took 
a letter of credit from Le Conteulex on Amsterdam by way 
of precaution. On my arrival at Amsterdam I found that 
Bancroft had not kept his word, nor ever wrote me a line. 
I then depended on the credit that Le Conteulex had, without 
the least difficulty, given me in an open letter ; but his cor- 
respondent imformed me he had received orders to pay me 
nothing till more explicit and satisfactory accounts should be 
received from you ! I had then no funds in my hands ; and 
if I had not had the fortune to be immediately relieved from 
a quarter on which I had no clairfi, I should have found my- 
self in great distress. 

" I should be glad to know the state of the bank, &c.,^ 
though I at present want no remittance. My address is, un- 
der cover, to Messrs. N. and J. Van-Stophorst and Hubbard, 
Amsterdam. Present my respectful compliments to Mrs. 
Ross and the young ladies. I may perhaps return to America 
in the latter end of the summer ; and in that case I shall wish 
to purchase a little farm, where I may live in peace. I am 
always affectionately yours. 

" John Ross, Esq., Philadelphia. 

" N. B. — I presume you have received my bust, as Mr. 
Jefferson has forwarded it for you." 

Paul Jones to Dr. Franklin. 

" Amsterdam, December 27, 1789. 
" Dear Sir, — The enclosed documents from my friend, 
the Count de Segur, Minister Plenipotentiary of France at 
St. Petersburg!), will explain to you in some degree my 
reasons for leaving Russia, and the danger to which I was 
exposed by the dark intrigues and mean subterfuges of Asiatic 
jealousy and malice. Your former friendship for me, which 
I remember with particular satisfaction, and have ever been 
ambitious to merit, will, I am sure, be exerted in the kind use 



LETTER TO MR. PARISH. 333 

you will make of the three pieces I now send you, for my 
justification in the eyes of my friends in America, whose 
good opinion is dearer to me than anything else. I wrote to 
the Empress from Warsaw in the beginning of October, with 
a copy of my journal, which will show her Majesty how 
much she has been deceived by the account she had of our 
maritime operations last campaign. I can easily prove to the 
world that I have been treated unjustly ; but I intend to re- 
main silent at least till I know the fate of my journal. 

" I shall remain in Europe till after the opening of the 
next campaign, and perhaps longer, before I return to Ame- 
rica. From the troubles in Brabant, and the measures now 
pursuing by the King of Prussia, &c, I presume that peace 
is yet a distant object, and that the Baltic will witness warm- 
er work than it has yet done. On the death of Admiral 
Greig, I was last year called from the Black Sea by the Em- 
press to command a squadron in the Baltic, &c. This set 
the invention of all my enemies and rivals at work, and the 
event has proved that the Empress cannot always do as she 
pleases. If you do me the favour to write to me, my ad- 
dress is, under cover, to Messieurs N. and J. Van Stophorst 
and Hubbard at Amsterdam. 

"I am, with sincere affection, dear sir, your most obedient 
and most humble servant. 

" His Excellency B. Franklin, <^c, fyc. 
Philadelphia. 

" N. B. — It is this day ten years since I left the Texel m 
the Alliance." 

To Mr. Parish, the well-known Hamburgh merchant, with 
whom Paul Jones had become acquainted on his journey to 
Russia, he thus wrote under a vague idea of going to Ham- 
burgh till his fate was determined: — "My departure from 
Copenhagen was so sudden, that I omitted writing to you, 
intending to have done it from St. Petersburgh. There I found 



334 LETTER TO MR. PARISH. 

myself in such a round of feasting and business till the mo- 
ment of my departure for the Black Sea, that I again post- 
poned. 

" Had I wrote you after my arrival at Cherson, I have every 
reason to think my letters would have been intercepted ; but, 
notwithstanding my past silence, I can truly assure you, that 
I have constantly entertained the most perfect and grateful 
sense of your friendly and polite behaviour to me at Hamburgh 
and Copenhagen. I will now thankfully pay to your order 
the cost of the smoked beef you were so obliging as to send 
to my friend, Mr. Jefferson, at my request. The kind interest 
you have taken in my concerns, and the great desire to culti- 
vate your esteem and friendship, are my present inducements 
for troubling you with the enclosed packet for the Chevalier 
Bourgoing, (the French resident at Hamburgh,) which I leave 
under a flying seal for your perusal, praying you to shut the 
exterior cover before you deliver it. I shall make no com- 
ments on the documents I send for the Baron de la Houze 
but let the simple truth speak for herself. I shall show you, 
when we meet, things that will surprise you, for you can 
scarcely have an idea how much our operations have been 
misrepresented. 

" As I am for the present the master of my time, I shall 
perhaps make you a visit in the spring, and pay my court to 
some of your kind, rich old ladies. To be serious, I must 
stay in Europe till it is seen what changes the present politics 
will produce, and till I can hear from America ; and if you 
think I can pass my time quietly, agreeably, and at a small 
expense at Hamburgh, I should prefer it to the fluctuating 
prospects of other places." 

The documents above referred to were copies of the letters 
of Count Segur for Baron de la Houze, the French minister 
at Copenhagen : from him they drew a polite and soothing 
replv : — 



JONES'S PROPERTY. 335 



Baron de la Houze to Paul Jones. 



" Copenhagen, 9th February, 1790. 

" It is but a few days since I received, with the letter with 
which you have honoured me of the 29th December, the 
copies of that of the Count de Segur, which you have been 
pleased to communicate to me, and which were accompanied 
by the article inserted on your account in the Gazette of 
France, and which I had read. This article, which has been 
repeated in many foreign gazettes, has entirely destroyed all 
the venomous effects which calumny had employed to tarnish 
the distinguished reputation which you have acquired by your 
talents and valour. In consequence, public opinion still con- 
tinues to render you justice, and the most noble revenge you 
can take on your enemies is to gather fresh laurels. The cele- 
brated Athenian general, Themistocles, has said, — ' I do not 
envy the situation of the man who is not envied.' " 

Baron Krudner had been actively useful to Paul Jones while 
in Copenhagen, both in promoting his views in entering the Rus- 
sian service, and in the affair of the Danish pension. Though 
we are aware that the Rear- Admiral had property of different 
descriptions, the state of his finances must, about this time, have 
been embarrassed by his large disbursements during the Rus- 
sian campaign, his long journeys, indisposition, and other 
causes of expenses. In writing from America to a lady in 
whom he took a strong interest, he represents himself, im- 
mediately previous to his last voyage in 1787, as "almost 
without money, and puzzled to obtain a supply." He wrote, 
as has been seen, in this emergency to Dr. Bancroft,* who af- 
terwards, in London, promised him assistance, but failea to 

* Dr. Bancroft had pecuniary transactions with Paul Jones, and at this time 
may have owed him money. The Doctor was addicted to gambling in the 
English funds, and on this account lost the confidence of Congress, and the 
diplomatic appointment which he held. It is probable that he employed the 
money of his friends in the same speculations, partly for his own advantage, 
and partly for theirs. 



336 LETTER TO KRUDNER. 

keep his word. He intimates to Mr. Parish, that he could 
wish " to live at small expense ;" and there are other reasons 
to conclude, that his finances, at least so far as regarded ready 
money, were not flourishing. This circumstance of actual 
exigency may, as was formerly hinted, account for the anx- 
iety respecting the Danish pension manifested in this letter to 
Baron Krudner ; it is in other respects curious : — 

44 Rear-Admiral Paul Jones to Baron Krudner, Russian Envoy at 
Copenhagen. 

"Amsterdam, 29th December, 1789. 

" My dear Sir, — Though I have not written to your Ex- 
cellency since I set out on my first journey to St. Petersbuigh, 
yet I have constantly retained the most lively sense of your 
kind behaviour to me at Copenhagen. I must beg to refer 
you to his Excellency the Baron de la Houze, to whom I now 
transmit three documents for my justification in the eyes of 
my friends in Denmark. Notwithstanding the unjust treat- 
ment I received in Russia, the warm attachment with which 
the Empress inspired me at the beginning still remains rooted 
in my heart. You know, Sir, that her Imperial Majesty 
thought my sword an object worthy of her attention, sought 
it with the most flattering eagerness, and treated me the first 
time I was at her court with unexampled distinction. That 
sword has been successfully and frequently drawn on critical 
occasions, to render the most essential services to her empire, 
and to cover her flag with fresh laurels. For this I have 
greatly exposed my reputation, and entirely sacrificed my 
military pride. Yet I have seen the credit of my services 
bestowed on others, and I am the only officer who made the 
campaign of the Liman without, being advanced. In a letter 
I wrote the Empress the 17th of May last, I mentioned tha 
her Majesty would soon receive a direct proof from America 
of the unanimous approbation with which I am honoured by 
the United States. I alluded to the gold medal which I am 



LETTER TO KRUDNER. 337 

to receive, and respecting which you have in your hands a 
copy of the unanimous act of Congress. That medal is now 
elegantly executed, and is ready for me at Paris. The United 
State's have ordered an example of my medal to be presented 
to every sovereign in Europe, Great Britain excepted. When 
we meet, I shall produce clear proof of all I have said re- 
specting Russia. The only promise I asked from the Em- 
press at the beginning, and, indeed, the only condition I made 
with her Majesty, was, that ' she should not condemn me icith- 
out having heard me' I need make no remark to a man of 
your clear understanding. You advised me to write to the 
Empress by the post. I wrote several letters while in the de- 
partment of the Black Sea to my friend Mr. Jefferson, at 
Paris, containing no detail of our operations, yet they were 
all intercepted. I have, I think, reason to apprehend that 
there will be no peace this winter, and that the Baltic will 
witness warmer work than it has yet done. 

" You remember that Count B (Bernstorf ) showed 

you a paper which he sent, to be delivered to me by the 
Danish Minister at St. Petersburgh. I received that paper 
without any alteration whatever, either in the ' date* or other- 
wise. If I understood you right, it was intended that * a year's 
payment would be made in advance,' but I have not since 
heard a word in that respect. I wish to be informed how the 
payment is intended to be made. It cannot surely be in 
Danish bank-paper. You will do me a great favour if you 
can obtain an explicit answer, and it would be much more 
agreeable if the payment could be made here, instead of being 
made at any other place. I have not yet mentioned this affair 
to any person whatever, except yourself. You are no stranger 
to my sentiments. You know the present happy state of 
America. That nation will soon create a respectable marine. 
It is now a year since I gave a plan to the court of St. Peters- 
burgh, for forming a political and commercial connexion witn 
the United States. The Empress approved this much, and 
29 



338 ARREARS OF PAY. 

there was question of sending me to Ameriea in consequence 
But a great man told me, ' que cela enrageroit les Anglais 
davantage contre la Russie, et qu'il falloit auparavant faire 
la paix avec les Turcs.' Accept my warm congratulations 
on the well-merited advancement you have received in the 
Order of St. Wolodimer. I hear that your lady* is at Paris. 
I beg you to assure her of my great respect," &c. &c. 

Baron Krudner replied, entirely blinking the memorial 
touching Russian affairs, but assuring his correspondent of 
success in obtaining the Danish pension, of which he had 
spoken to Count Bernstorf, and obtained a promise of imme- 
diate payment ; — which promise, it is to be inferred, was never 
meant to be kept, — as it certainly never was. 

Paul Jones appears to have gone to England in the spring'' 
of this year, (1790,) but did not remain long. The object of 
his visit does not transpire ; and that he had been there only 
comes out incidentally in his correspondence, especially in a 
letter to M. de Genet, written in June, when he had reached 
Paris. In this letter he informs that gentleman, that he had 
not yet paid his respects to his sister, (Madame Campan,) but 
intended doing so, and presenting the lady with his bust, as 
a mark of personal regard for her father and brother. He 
continues, " I have shown M. de Simolin proof that, if I have 
not sought to avenge myself of the unjust and cruel treatment 
I met with in Russia, my forbearance has been only the result 
of my delicate attachment towards the Empress. You will 
oblige me by inquiring at the cabinet, and- demanding the ap- 
pointments due to me for the current year, which ends the 
1st of July, agreeably to the promise of the Empress, com- 
municated to me by the Counts de Bruce and Besborodko. 
I wish to have that money immediately transmitted to me." 

* The afterwards well-known Madame Krudner, who was still enchanting 
Parisian circles with her charms and attitudes in the " shawl-dance," not hav- 
ing as yet assumed the part of devotee, or prophetess, in which she afterwards 
made an equally remarkable figure. 



LETTER TO A LADY. 339 

While in Amsterdam the Rear-Admiral received letters 
from Madame Le Mair d'Altigny, a lady who appears to have 
taken a peculiar interest in his welfare. This lady was prob- 
ably a widow ; but her actual condition as wife or widow 
we have no means of verifying, and leave it entirely to the 
penetration of our fair readers. 

" Rear-Admiral Paul Jones to Madame Le Mair d'Altigny, at Avignon. 

"Amsterdam, 8th February, 1790. 

u I have received, my dear Madam, the two obliging letters 
you did me the honour to address to me from Avignon on 
the 18th and 22d of December. Accept also, I pray you, my 
sincere acknowledgments for the two letters you had the 
kindness to send me at Strasburgh. I am infinitely flattered 
by the interest with which Ihave the happiness to have inspired 
you, and your good washes in my concerns give me true 
pleasure. I am not come here on account of anything connect- 
ed with military operations ; and though I think it right to 
retain my rank, I have always regarded war as the scourge 
of the human race. I am very happy that you are once 
more above your difficulties. Past events will enable you to 
value the blessings of Providence, among which, to a sensible 
heart, there are none greater than health and independence, 
enjoyed in the agreeable society of persons of merit. As 
soon as circumstances permit, I shall feel eager to join the 
delightful society in which you are. As you have not sent 
me your address at Avignon, I beg of you to do so, and to be 
assured of my entire esteem." 

The lady, to visit whom the Rear-Admiral was willing to 
make so long a journey, when circumstances permitted, ap- 
pears to have replied in the following month; but it was 
not till December in the same year that she obtained an 
answer. 



840 LETTER TO A LADY. 

"Paris, December 27th, 1790. 

" My dear Madam, — I have received your charming lettei 
of the 2d March. Having an affair of business to arrange in 
England, I went from Amsterdam to London at the beginning 
of May, to settle it. I escaped being murdered on landing.* 
From London I came hither, and have not had an hour of 
health since my arrival. I now feel convalescent, otherwise 
I would not have dared to write, for fear of giving pain to 
your feeling heart. In leaving Holland my plan was to re- 
pair to Avignon, in compliance with your obliging invitation. 
My health formed an invincible obstacle, but I still hope to 
indemnify myself on the return of the fine weather. I was 
for a long time very much alarmed by the disturbances which 
interrupted the peace of your city, and am very glad to see 
they are ended. I have learned, with lively satisfaction, that 
they have had no disagreeable consequences so far as regards 
you. Give me news of yourself, I pray you, and of those in- 
teresting persons of whom you speak in your last letter. Ac- 
cept the assurance of the sincere sentiments which you are 
formed to inspire. 

" My address is, under cover, to M. Dorbery, No 42, Rue 
Tournon, Paris. 

" JV.B. — Have you not sufficient confidence in my discre- 
tion to explain ' the enigma' of the happiness with which you 
say ' I will be loaded, and which will astonish me so soon as 
I know it V " 

Of Madame Le Mair d'Altigny we hear nothing more, 
so that her enigma in all probability remained unexpounded. 

It might be presumed that the mind of Jones was now 
effectually weaned from the service of the country where he 
had been so " unjustly and cruelly treated:" but such was not 

* This is undoubtedly meant in jest ; Paul Jones was by no means so 
senseless as to fear assassination in England. 



LETTER TO POTEMKIN. 341 

the fact. At intervals, during the last ten years of his life, 
he had been subject to severe attacks of indisposition, and 
about this time he was labouring under that illness which, 
with brief intermission, never again left him ; yet was his 
mind as ardently occupied as ever with hopes of serving in Rus- 
sia. He addressed Prince Potemkin,he addressed the Empress: 
— his mind on this subject appears to have been possessed ; his 
very eagerness must have tended to defeat his anxious wishes. 
These letters from Paris, together with one other document, 
conclude the history of his unfortunate connexion with Rus- 
sia, — a connexion which one cannot help regarding as the 
cause of his premature death. The generous reader must 
be pained to see a man of unquestioned bravery, and of very 
considerable talent and professional skill, who, in his own 
adopted country of America, might have lived to old age in 
peace and honour, fighting her battles in the senate, as he had 
already done on the ocean, clinging thus in hopeless pertina- 
city to the delusion which had undone him. 

" To his Highness the Prince- Marshal Potemkin. 

" Paris, 24th July, 1790. 
" My Lord, — I do not think it becomes me to let pass the 
occasion of the return of your aide-de-camp, to congratulate 
you on the brilliant success of your operations since I had 
the honour to serve under your orders, and to express to you 
in all the sincerity of my heart, the regret I feel in not being 
fortunate enough to contribute thereto. After the campaign 
of Liman, when I had leave, according to the special desire 
of her Imperial Majesty, to return to the department of the 
Northern Seas, your Highness did me the favour to grant 
me a letter of recommendation to the Empress, and to speak 
to me these words, « Rely upon my attachment. I am dis- 
posed to grant you the most solid proofs of my friendship 
for the present and for the future.' Do you recollect them ? 
This disclosure was too flattering for me to forget it, and I 
29* 



342 LETTER TO POTEMKIN. 

hope }ou will permit me to remind you of it. Circumstances 
and the high rank of my enemies have deprived me of the 
benefits which I had dared to hope from the esteem which 
you had expressed for me, and which I had endeavoured to 
merit by my services. You know the disagreeable situation 
in which I was placed ; but if, as I dared to believe, I have 
preserved your good opinion, I may still hope to see it fol- 
lowed by advantages, which it will be my glory to owe to you. 
M. de Simolin can testify to you that my attachment to Rus- 
sia, and-to the great Princess who is its sovereign, has always 
been constant and durable ; I attended to my duties, and not 
to my fortune. I have been wrong, and I avow it with a 
frankness which carries with it its own excuse — 1st, That I did 
not request of you a carte-blanche, and the absolute command 
of all the forces of the Liman. 2d, To have written to your 
Highness under feelings highly excited, on the 5 4 th October, 
1788. These are my faults. If my enemies have wished 
to impute others to me, I swear before God that they are a 
calumny. It only rests with me, my Lord, to unmask the 
villany of my enemies, by publishing my journal of the 
operations of the campaign of Liman, with the proofs, clear 
as the day, and which I have in my hands. It only rests 
with me to prove that I directed, under your orders, all the 
useful operations against the Capitan Pacha ; that it was I 
who beat him on the 7th June ; that it was I and the brave 
men I commanded who conquered him on the 17th June, and 
who chased into the sands two of his largest galleys, before 
our flotilla was ready to fire a single shot, and during the 
time a very considerable part of the force of the enemy re- 
mained at anchor immediately in rear of my squadron ; that 
it was I who gave to General Suwarrow, (he had the noble- 
ness to declare it at court before me, to the most respectable 
witnesses,) the first project to establish the battery and breast- 
works on the Isthmus of Kinbourn,' and which were of such 
great utility on the night of the 17-1 8th June ; th^t it was I, in 



LETTER TO POTEMKIN. 343 

person, who towed, with my sloops and other vessels, the bat 
teries which were the nearest to the place, the 1st July, and 
who took the Turkish galleys by boarding, very much in ad- 
vance of our line, whilst some gentlemen, who have been too 
highly rewarded in consequence of it, were content to re- 
main in the rear of the struggles of our line, if I may be 
allowed to use the expression, sheltered from danger. You 
have seen, yourself, my Lord, that I never valued my 
person on any occasion where I had the good fortune to act 
under your eye. The whole of Europe acknowledges my 
veracity, and grants me some military talents, which it would 
give me pleasure to employ in the service of Russia, under 
your orders. The time will arrive, my Lord, when you will 
know the exact truth of what I have told you. Time is a 
sovereign master. It will teach you to appreciate the man, 
who, loaded with your benefits, departed from the court of 
Russia with a memorial prepared by other hands and the 
enemies of your glory, and of which memorial he made no 
use, because your brilliant success at the#taking of Oczakow, 
which he learned on his arrival in White Russia, gave the 
lie to all the horrors which had been brought forward to 
enrage the Empress against you. You know it was the echo 
of another intriguer at the court of Vienna. In fine, time 
will teach you, my Lord, that I am neither a mountebank nor 
a swindler, but a man true and loyal. I rely upon the 
attachment and friendship which you promised me. I rely 
on it, because I feel myself worthy of it. I reclaim your 
promise, because you are just, and I know you are a lover of 
truth. I commanded, and was the only responsible person in 
the campaign of the Liman, the others being only of inferior 
rank, or simple volunteers ; and I am, however, the only one 
who has not been promoted or rewarded. I am extremely 
thankful for the order of St. Anne which you procured for 
me, according to your letter of thanks, for my conduct in the 
affair of the 1th June, which was not decisive. The 17th 



344 LETTER TO POTEMKIN. 

June I gained over the Capitan Pacha a complete victory, 
which saved Cherson and Kinbourn, the terror of which 
caused the enemy to lose nine vessels of war in their preci- 
pitate flight on the following night, under the cannon of the 
battery and breast-work which I had caused to be erected in 
the Isthmus of Kinbourn. On this occasion I had the honour 
again to receive a letter of thanks; but. my enemies and rivals 
have found means to abuse your confidence, since they have 
been exclusively rewarded. They merited rather to have 
been punished for having burnt nine armed prizes, with their 
crews, which were absolutely in our power, having pre- 
viously run aground under our guns. 

" I have been informed that, according to the institution of 
the order of St. George, I have the right to claim its decora-" 
tions in the second class for the victory of the 17th June, but 
I rely upon your justice and generosity. I regret that a 
secret project, which I addressed to the Count de Besborodko 
the 6th of June of the last year, has not been adopted. I com- 
municated this project to the Baron de Beichler, who has 
promised me to speak to you of it. I was detained in St. 
Petersburgh until the end of August, in order to hinder me, as 
I have heard, from proceeding into the service of Sweden. 
My poor enemies, how I pity them ' But for this circumstance 
my intention was to have presented myself at your head- 
quarters in the hope to be of some utility ; and the Baron de 
Beichler, in departing from St. Petersburgh in order to join 
you, promised me to assure you of my devotion for the ser- 
vice of your department, and that I should hold myself ready 
to return to you the instant I was called. My conduct has 
not since changed, although I hold in my hand a parole for 
two years, and I regard eighteen months of this parole, in a 
time of war, more as a punishment than as a favour. I hope 
that your Highness will succeed in concluding peace this 
year with the Turks ; but, in a contrary case, if it should 
please you to recall me to take command of the fleet in the 



LETTER TO CATHERINE II. 345 

insuing campaign, I would ask permission to bring with me 
•.he French officer concerning whom I spoke to you, with one 
or two others, who are good tacticians, and who have some 
knowledge of war. On my return here I received a gold 
medal, granted me by the unanimous voice of Congress, at 
the moment I received a parole from this honourable body. 
The United States have decreed me this honour, in order to 
perpetuate the remembrance of the services which I rendered 
to America eight years previous, and have ordered a copy 
to be presented to all the sovereigns and all the academies of 
Europe, with the exception of Great Britain. There is reason 
to believe that your Highness will be numbered among the 
sovereigns of Europe, in consequence of the treaty of peace 
which you are about to conclude with the Turks ; but in any 
case, if a copy of my medal will be acceptable to you as a 
mark of my attachment for your person, it will do me an 
honour to offer it to you. Paul Jones." 

The Rear-Admiral suffered much bodily illness during the 
interval which elapsed between the despatch of this letter and 
the period when he sent off his forlorn hope, the subjoined 
epistle, in the spring of the following year : — 

To her Imperial Majesty of all the Russias. 

25th Feb. 
PARIS '8lhM^ch, 179L 

" Madam, — If I could imagine that the letter which I had 

the honour to write to your Majesty from Warsaw, the 25th 

September, 1789, had come to hand, it would be without 

doubt indiscreet in me to beg you to cast your eyes on the 

documents enclosed, which accuse no person,* and the only 

* In a letter from Warsaw to Mr. Littlepage, he says, the Count de B , 

(we know not whether De Bruce or De Besborodko, though it is probably the 
latter,) had intercepted his despatch to the Empress tiil orders could be ffoi 
from Potemkin. 



346 LETTER TO CATHERINE II. 

intent of which is, to let you see that in the important cam 
paign of Liman, the part which I played was not either that 
of a zero or of a harlequin, who required to be made a colonel 
at the tail of his regiment. I have in my hands the means 
to prove, incontestably, that I directed all the useful operations 
against the Capitan Pacha. The task which was given to 
me at this critical conjunction was very difficult. I was 
obliged to sacrifice my own opinion and risk my military re- 
putation for the benefit of your empire. But I hope you will be 
satisfied with the manner in which I conducted myself, and 
also of the subsequent arrangements, of which lam persuaded 
you have not been acquainted until this moment. The gra- 
cious counsel which your Majesty has often done me the 
honour to repeat to me before my departure for the Blaclf 
Sea, and in the letter which you deigned to write to me after- 
wards, has since been the rule of my conduct; and the faithful 
attachment with which you had inspired me for your person, 
was the only reason which hindered me from requesting my 
dismissal when I wrote to you from Warsaw ; for I confess 
that I was extremely afflicted, and even offended, at having 
received a parole for two years in time of war, — a parole 
which it has never entered into my mind to wish for, and still 
less to ask, and of which I have not profited to go to Amer- 
ica, or even to Denmark, where I had important business ; for 
I had always hoped to be usefully employed in your service, 
before the expiration of this parole, which has done me so 
much injury ; and although in public I would not have failed 
to have spoken to you at the last audience which you granted 
me, yet I was unfortunately led to believe the repeated prom- 
ises made me, that I should have a private audience in order 
to lay before you my military projects, and to speak of them 
tn detail. 

'■ I hope that the brilliant success with which Providence 
has blessed youi arms will enable you to grant peace to your 
enemies without shedding more of human blood , but in a 



BARON GRIMM. 347 

contrary case your Majesty can be well instructed from my 
project, No. 12, of the last year. 

" As I have my enemies, and as the term of my paioie is 
about to expire, I await the orders of your Majesty, and 
should be flattered, if it is your pleasure for me to come ana 

render you an account in person. Mr. , who has the 

goodness to charge himself with this packet, which I have ad- 
dressed to him, sealed with my arms, will also undertake to 
forward me your orders ; I therefore pray you to withdraw 
me as soon as possible from the cruel uncertainty in which I 
am placed. Should you deign, Madam, to inform me that you 
are pleased with the services which I have had the happiness 
to render you, I will console myself for the misfortunes which 
I have suffered, as I drew my sword for you from personal 
attachment and ambition, but not for interest. My fortune, 
as you know, is not very considerable ; but as I am philosopher 
enough to confine myself to my means, I shall be always rich. 
" I have the honour to be, 
Madam, 
Of your Imperial Majesty 

The most faithful and 

Obedient servant, 

Paul Jones.' 5 

So late as the month of July of the same year, we finri 
°aul Jones still in Paris, and now in very bad health, but even 
yet occupied with Russia. His next and final letter is address- 
ed to Baron Grimm, the literary correspondent of the Em- 
press, who, a dozen years before, had celebrated his praises.* 



* In the original correspondence of Grimm we find the following- passage, 
which does not appear in the much-abridged edition of his voluminous workj 
published in England. This passage shows that both Mr. Sherburne and 
the present editor are mistaken in supposing that the bust of Paul Jones was 
originally taken at his own suggestion. The letter of Baron Grimm bears 
date January, ] 780, at which time he says Paul Jones had been some weeks in 



34b LETTER TO GRIMM. 

His former attempts having been so utterly unsuccessful, lit 
discovers considerable address in trying his fortune in a new 
tack. The Empress, it may be premised, had long shown 
herself ambitious of being considered the munificent patroness 
of science and of scientific men, in whatever regarded the im- 
provement of her country, and particularly of her navy. 

4 Rear- Admiral Paul Jones to Baron Grimm. 

"Paris, 9th July, 1791. 
" Sir, — M. Houdon has sent to your house the bust which 
you have done me the honour to accept.* Mademoiselle 

Paris. This cannot be correct, as it was among the very last days of Decem- 
ber when he escaped from the Texel ; the only error, however, is of a few 
weeks. " The intrepid Paul Jones," says the Baron, " has been here for some 
weeks. He has had the honour to be presented to the King. He has been 
applauded with transport at all the public places where he has shown himself, 
and particularly at the opera. It is a singularity worthy of remark, that this 
brave Corsair, who has given multiplied proofs of possessing a soul the most 
firm, and courage the most determined, is at the same time the most feeling 
and mild man in the world, and that he has made a great many verses full of 
elegance and softness, the sort of poetry which appears most congenial to his 
taste being the elegy and the pastoral. The Lodge of the Nine Sisters, of 
which he is a member, have employed M. Houdon to take his bust. This re- 
semblance is a new masterpiece worthy of the chisel which appears destined 
to consecrate to immortality illustrious men of all kinds." 

* His own bust, " now decorated," he says, " with the order of St. Anne, on 
the American uniform, one reason why I wish to be authorized by the Ame- 
rican States to wear that order." This is said in a letter to Mr. Jefferson, 
written soon after his final epistle to the Empress, and when he had formed 
the design of again entering the French fleet of evolution, if bodily indisposi- 
tion, and the worse sickness of hope deferred, left him power to form any con- 
siderate or consistent plan of future conduct. There were five orders of 
knighthood in Russia, three of which were instituted by Peter the Great, and 
two, that of St. George and St. Vladimir, by the Empress Catherine dso 
Second. The order of St. Anne was a Holstein, and not a Russian o.der 
The Empress never conferred this order herself. She left it to the Grand Duko 
Paul, as Duke of Holstein, and from him Paul Jones received it. It was ae 
eordingly less valued than those of her own institution bestowed by herself 



NEW-FASHIONED SHIPS. 349 

Marchais has told me all the obliging things you have said 
regarding me. 

" As it is my duty to interest myself in objects that may be 
useful to Russia, I must inform you that I have met with a 
man here, whom I have known for fifteen years, who has in- 
vented a new construction of ships of war, which has small 
resemblance, either externally or internally, to our present 
war-ships, and which will, he says, possess the following ad- 
vantages over them : — 

" I. The crew will be better sheltered during an engage- 
ment. 

" II. The lodging-room of the crew will be more spacious ; 
every individual may have a bed or a hammock, and there may 
be as much air as is wished for, night and day, in the sleep- 
ing apartments. 

" III. There will be less smoke cruring an engagement." 

The enumeration of all the rare qualities of this beau ideal 
of a war-ship might prove tedious ; suffice it, that a ship of 
the new construction, of 54 guns, if well armed and com- 
manded, might have faced one of the old make carrying 100 
guns ; that it would cost less both in artillery and timber, be 
a better sailer, go nearer the wind, and possess many other 
advantages " For a long time," the Rear- Admiral states, 
11 he had, in conjunction with his friend Dr. Franklin, tried to 
construct a ship combining the advantages of being a fast 
sailer, not driving to leeward, drawing little water, &c. ; but 
they always encountered great obstacles. From the death of 
that great philosopher," he continues, " having rather too 
much time on my hands, (a very gentle hint,) I think I have 
surmounted the difficulties which baffled us and stopped our 
progress The ship-builder of whom I have spoken has ex- 
plained nothing to me in detail, and I can form no idea on 
the subject. He washes to preserve his invention, and to draw 
emolument from it ; and nothing can be more just, if on ex- 
periment his discovery holds. As this is a thing which ap- 
30 



350 NEW-FASHIONED SHIPS. 

pears to me to deserve the attention of the Empress, I beg of 
you to acquaint her Majesty as soon as possible. This person 
wished to go to England to offer his discovery, where I think 
it would have been received ; but, as I have some influence 
with him, I have persuaded him to remain here, and wait 
your reply. If he receive any encouragement, he will com- 
municate his ideas more fully to me. But in every case I 
dedicate to the Empress, without any stipulation, all that my 
feeble genius has accomplished in naval architecture." The 
Rear- Admiral then relates his own supposed discovery, and, 
like a skilful orator, winds up, by pressing hard the main 
point of his argument. " Will not this, presuming it correct, 
be of great advantage to the infant marine of the Black Sea, 
and consequently to the prosperity of the Russian Empire'?" 
It appears that Baron Grimm received an answer from the 
Empress in relation to this first application, though it can 
scarcely be called a satisfactory one. She says there was a 
prospect of a speedy peace ; but if peace did not take place, 
she would let M. Paul Jones know her intentions respecting 
himself: and she tacitly reproves Grimm's interference by 
saying, that she would not choose him as the medium of **^r 
communications with Paul Jones. 




STYLE OF JONES'S LETTEKS. 



35 1 



CHAPTER XIII. 




■=r n ^^^^rr^^H^ 



HE voluminous papers leit by 
Paul Jones afford very scanty 
materials for his domestic his- 
tory. From boyhood his place 
in society was completely iso- 
lated. His extensive corres- 
pondence, as it came into the 
hands of his relatives, is chiefly 
that of business, or of the cere- 
monial connected with business, 
and with the courtesies of acquaintanceship. His intercourse 
with society amounted to little more than the exchange of 
the customary offices of kindness and civility. He was early 
separated, by insurmountable circumstances, from his own 
relatives ; he never afterwards found a fixed home, nor does 
his correspondence afford any trace of the kindly, genial, un- 
bending, and cordial familiarity of confidential friendship. 
His letters consequently want the charm of a particular or 
individual interest. Few of them contain a single observa- 
tion on men or manners, or even the expression of an opinion 
not merely professional. His journals, in like manner, are 
strictly confined to professional affairs, and contain little tha + 
can either extend the range of knowledge or gratify a liberal 
curiosity. With the fields of observation, whether in America, 
France, or Russia, that were presented to a mind so active 



352 JONES'S GALLANTRY. 

and acute, this is much to be regretted. As it is, the interest 
of this memoir must rest wholly on the public life of its sub- 
ject. The few of his private confidential letters which exist, 
do, however, unfold his character in a very amiable way. 
Those to his relations in Scotland, written in the latter years 
of his life, display the most affectionate solicitude for the 
happiness of those who could but little add to his, and much 
good sense in his endeavours to promote it. 

According to his London or American biographer, Paul 
Jones was " as chivalrous in love as in war." This is as- 
sumed, it is probable, on the principle that every seaman is 
bound to be so, as a point of professional duty, — from Nelson 
of the Nile down to Jack or Ben just paid off at Portsmouth. 
" Paul Jones," we are gravely told, " was always seriously in 
love," and, what is more singular, " often with women he had 
never seen." This contradicts all ordinary experience, and 
even goes beyond romantic tradition. Though seamen are 
not remarkable for tedious or roundabout modes of courtship, 
they are seldom so far spiritualized as not to require at least 
one passing glance of the fair objects that kindle the sudden 
flame. That among all existing unknown beauties, Paul 
Jones should have singled out Lady Selkirk as the object of 
his romantic and passionate admiration, appears, at least on 
this, the frigid side of the Atlantic, too absurd for serious refu- 
tation. His gallantry of disposition, and the disagreeable 
and derogatory imputations to which his descent on St. Mary's 
Isle was liable, sufficiently account for the address to Lady 
Selkirk of a man who had so quick a sense of dishonour, and 
so tenacious a regard for reputation, as Paul Jones evinced 
in every transaction of his life. It is therefore quite unneces- 
sary to account for his conduct in this memorable affair, by 
raising the ridiculous hypothesis of his having fallen in love 
with a married lady of high rank, whom he had never seen, 
and whose eldest son was at that time of an age to have act- 
ed as his lieutenant. It is indeed just possible, that, while 



JONES'S GALLANTRY. 353 

Paul Jones was still a lad, sailing to the port of Kirkcudbright, 
he might have seen the lady of St. Mary's Isle, though even 
then it would be preposterous to imagine such long-lived and 
romantic consequences from this transient vision, however 
fair and captivating. 

Paul Jones was by no means so great a fool as his historian, 
no doubt to do him honour, would insinuate. A man " in the 
singular situation of being in love with every woman in 
Paris," and " often with women he had never seen," was 
evidently in no imminent peril from the attractions of any in- 
dividual charmer, however powerful these might be. In the 
present case this seems to have been the fact. The true, and, 
it may be said, the only mistress to whom Paul Jones was 
sver devoted with all the powers of his heart and mind was 
— Glory, in pursuit of whom he made no scruple at any time 
to set his foot on the neck of " the gentle Cupid," or, if need 
were, to use that " soft integument" as a stepping-stone in his 
mounting path. 

It is said that John Paul Jones, soon after entering the 
navy, formed an ardent attachment to an American lady. 
Their affection was mutual, but circumstances forbade their 
union ; and from this period he formed the resolution of never 
marrying. There is, however, much to intervene between 
the cradle and the grave of the passions ; and when a man 
expresses resolutions of this kind, his friends generally know 
with what proper degree of credit or allowance to receive 
them. He sent a message to his sisters, by Mr. Kennedy, — 
the French teacher of Dumfries, who waited on him with 
letters from his relations, about the year 1784, — purporting 
that he would never marry ; yet shortly after this we find 
nim expressing a very tender and anxious interest for a French 
lady (Madame T ,) with whom he was in corres- 
pondence. 

The most brilliant period of the bonnes fortunes of Paul 
Jones was during his residence at Paris and Versailles in 
30* 



354 COUNTESS DE LAVENDAL. 

1780, and immediately after his escape from the Texel; the 
period commemorated by Baron Grimm, the era of his court 
favour, military order, and gold sword. He at this time 
engaged in various flirtations, of the kind and complexion 
which no man of his age and profession, moving in gay 
society in Paris, could have avoided, if he wished to live in 
the odour of gallantry. His acquaintance with the lady who 
assumes or who received the poetical appellation of Delia, 
must have commenced about this time, as the hottest fire of 
her love-letters appears to have fallen upon the Chevalier at 
L'Orient during the existence of Landais' mutiny. 

The conduct of the Chevalier at this time was, it is to be 
feared, more creditable to his general spirit of gallantry than 
to his fidelity to the fair and devoted Delia. Among the 
ladies whom he met most frequently in the society he fre- 
quented at Versailles was the Countess of Lavendal, a mar- 
ried woman,, (and marriage in Paris at this time made an in- 
dispensable ingredient in the attractions of a mistress,) young, 
beautiful, witty, and withal a little intriguing. To the good 
graces of this lady the Chevalier Paul Jones anxiously and 
assiduously recommended himself. There is, however, rea- 
son to surmise, that the gentleman might have been some- 
what of a self-seeker even in his admiration of the beautiful 
Countess. It is undeniable, that he owed all the distinction 
he had just obtained solely to court-favour, — to the French 
ministry he owed nothing. " La belle Comtesse," indeed, 
appeared to have looked to him as the medium of advance- 
ment or employment for her husband, without affecting to 
possess court-patronage herself; but there was no limiting the 
influence of a clever and beautiful woman at the Court of 
Versailles, where, although the reigning sovereign was unas- 
sailable, there were always so many open channels, through 
ministers and favourites, high and low, male and female. 
When the lady, whose object was to obtain employment for 
her husband, in conjunction with the American hero, but who 



JONES'S POETRY. 355 

nad no objection to the by-play of a little harmless coquetry, 
thought it prudent to draw back, after a course of very pro- 
mising encouragement, her admirer appears^to have borne his 
disappointment with great philosophy; and to have turned 
the tables upon the fickle charmer, and extricated himself 
from the affair with a cool dexterity that might command 
the applause of Chesterfield himself. 

This Parisian " course of true love" is fully elucidated by 
the following extracts of published letters, attributed to a young 
English lady, a Miss Edes, residing at the time in Versailles. 
They were written early in June and July, 1780. Coupling 
the fact of their immediate publication in England, with the 
staple of their composition, if left to our own instincts, and 
not positively assured that they were originally the private 
letters of a young lady, we would be inclined to attribute 
them to some of the gentlemen of the press who flourished 
fifty years ago ; and who then exported the scandal of Paris 
to London, in a somewhat clumsier way than the same busi- 
ness is still managed, but exactly in the same spirit. 

" The famous Paul Jones dines and sups here often," says 
Miss Edes ; " he is a smart man of thirty-six, speaks but little 
French, appears to be an extraordinary genius, a poet as well 
as a hero ; a few days ago he wrote some verses extempore, 
of which I send you a copy. He is greatly admired here, 
especially by the ladies, who are all wild for love of him, as 

he for them ; but he adores Lady , (the Countess La- 

vendal,) who has honoured him with every mark of polite 
ness and distinction." 

u Verses addressed to the Ladies who have done me the Honour of their polite 

Attention /" Presented by Paul Jones to Mademoiselle G .* 

" Insulted Freedom bled, — I felt her cause, 
And drew my sword to vindicate her laws, 
From principle, and not from vain applause. 

* This is supposed to be one of the daughters of M. Genet, but could not 
have been his eldest daughter, who was by this time married to M. Campan 
and a woman of the bedchamber to the Queen. 



356 JONES'S POETRY. 

I 've done my best ; self-interest far apart, 
And self-reproach a stranger to my heart ; 
My zeal still prompts, ambitious to pursue 
The foe, ye fair ! of liberty and you : 
Grateful for praise, spontaneous and unbought, 
A generous people's love not meanly sought ; 
To merit this, and bend the knee to beauty, 
Shall be my earliest and my latest duty." 

In this, and other effusions fully more creditable to his 
muse, Paul Jones, we presume, makes no worse figure than 
other clever men have done, when, departing from their true 
character, they choose to engage in the solemn fooleries or 
trifling puerilities of a part for which neither nature, educa- 
tion, nor habit, has fitted them.* 

' ' ' "" y 

* In vindication of the critical opinions of Grimm, who praises the "grace 
and softness" of the verses of Paul Jones, we subjoin what is considered a tole- 
rably fair specimen of his poetical vein. It is no disparagement of our own 
great naval hero to say, that the verses of Paul Jones are far superior to those 
of Nelson. Indeed, of all such effusions the opinion of Byron ought to be 
adopted as quite canonical — they are so good, that — " bad were better." The 
only use of the verses of Paul Jones is the evidence they afford, that their au- 
thor could not have been the brutal, ignorant, and ferocious pirate he is fre- 
quently described. In this view they are invaluable to truth and to his honest 
fame : — 

w Verses written on Board the Alliance off Ushant, the 1st Day of January 
1780, immediately after escaping out of the Texel from the Blockade of the 
British Fleet ; being in Answer to a Piece written and sent to the Texel by 
a young Lady at the Hague. 

TO MISS DUMAS. 

I. 

" Were I, Paul Jones, dear maid, the * king of sea,' 

I find such merit in thy virgin song, 

A coral crown with bays I 'd give to thee, 

A car which on the waves should smoothly glide along , 

The Nereids all about thy side should wait, 

And gladly sing in triumph of thy state, 

4 Vivat, vivat' the happy virgin muse! 

Of Liberty the friend, whom tyrant power pursues ! 



LOVE-LETTERS. 357 

The same young lady, supposed to be the Miss Edes, some- 
times noticed in the correspondence of the Chevalier with the 
Genet family, on another occasion, and after further acquaint < 
ance, writes thus: — 

" Since my last, Paul Jones drank tea and supped here. If 
I am in love with him, for love I may die ; I have as many 
rivals as there are ladies, but the most formidable is still 

Lady , (the Countess Lavendal,) who possesses all his 

heart. This lady is of high rank and virtue, very sensible, 
good-natured, and affable. Besides this, she is possessed of 
youth, beauty, and wit, and every other female accomplish- 
ment. He is gone, I suppose, for America. They corres- 
pond, and his letters are replete with elegance, sentiment, and 
delicacy. She drew his picture, (a striking likeness,) and 
wrote some lines under it, which are much admired, and pre- 
sented it to him, who, since he received it, is, he says, like a 
second Narcissus, in love with his own resemblance ; to be 

II 

" Or, happier lot ! were fair Columbia free 

From British tyranny, and youth still mine, 

I M tell a tender tale to one like thee 

With artless looks, and breast as pure as thine. 

If she approved my flame, distrust apart, 

Like faithful turtles, we 'd have but one heart ; 

Together then we 'd tune the silver lyre, 

As Love or sacred Freedom should our lays inspire. 

III. 
u But since, alas ! the rage of war prevails, 
And cruel Britons desolate our land, 
For Freedom still I spread my willing sails, 
My unsheathed sword my injured country shall command 
Go on, bright maid, the Muses all attend 
Genius like thine, and wish to be its friend. 
Trust me, although convey'd through this poor shift, 
My new-year's thoughts are grateful for thy virgin gift."* 

* This gallant effusion was despatched from Corogne, where Jones put in for a short time 
on his way to Groix. The lady was the daughter of M. Dumas, the American agent & 
Amsterdam. 



358 LOVE-LETTERS. 

sure he is the most agreeable sea-wolf one would wish to 
meet with. As to his verses, you may do with them what 
you please. The King had given him a magnificent gold 
sword, which, lest it should fall into the hands of the enemy, 
he has begged leave to commit it to the care of her ladyship, — 
a piece of gallantry which is here highly applauded. If any 
further account of this singular genius should reach my ..ands, 
you shah have it." 

We believe that even the most finished French coquet 
would feel rather startled at the eclat of an appearar ce like 
the above in an English periodical published within the month. 
The Countess must have been alarmed, and she took her 
measures accordingly. 

When Jones was compelled to return to L'Orient, and in^ 
the prospect of an immediate departure for America, he took 
courage to speak more plainly to this condescending Countess. 
Though, as has been noticed, he found it afterwards expedient 
to give the affair another turn, his first letter, which follows, 
cannot be mistaken : — 

" I am deeply concerned," he says, " in all that respects 
your happiness ; I therefore have been and am much affected 
at some words that fell in private conversation from Miss 
Edes the evening I left Versailles. I am afraid that you are 
less happy than I wish, and am sure you deserve to be. I am 
composing a cipher for a key to our future correspondence, 
so that you will be able to write' me very freely, and without 
risk. It is a small dictionary of particular words, with a 
number annexed to each of them. In our letters we will write 
sometimes the corresponding number instead of the word, so 
that the meaning can never be understood until the corres- 
ponding words are interlined over the numbers. 

" I beseech you to accept the within lock. I am sorry that 
it is now eighteen inches shorter than it was three months 
ago If I could send you my heart itself, or anything else 
that could afford you pleasure, it would be my happiness to 



LOVE-LETTERS. 359 

do it. Before I had the honour of seeing you, I wished to 
comply with the invitation of my lodge,* and I need not add 
that I have since found stronger reasons that have compelled 
me to seek the means of returning to France again as soon 
as possible." 

There was a manifest want of retenue in this epistle. The 
lady, it is said, kept the trophies, namely, the cipher, the let- 
ter, and the lock of hair, but wrote to Jones, expressing her 
astonishment at his audacity, and her conjecture that his 
packet had been misdirected when sent to herelf. She begged, 
at the same time, to introduce to him the Count her husband, 
who was to pass through L'Orient. " She should be obliged 
to the Chevalier to show him every civility." This he did, 
and afterwards wrote the Countess : — 

"L'Orient, July 14,1780. 
" Madam, — Since I had the honour to receive your packet 
from Versailles, I have carefully examined the copy of my 
letter from Nantes, but am still at a loss, and cannot conceive, 
what part of the letter itself could have occasioned your 
imagining I had mistaken the address. As for the little 
packet it contained, perhaps it might better have been omitted : 
if so, it is easily destroyed. If my letter has given you even 
a moment's uneasiness, I can assure you, that to think so 
would be as severe a punishment as could be inflicted upon 
me. However I may have been mistaken, my intention 
could never have been to give you the most distant offence. 
I was greatly honoured by the visit of the Count your hus 
band, and am so well convinced of his superior understand 
ing, that I am glad to believe Miss Edes was mistaken. I 
admire him so much, that I should esteem myself very happy 
indeed to have a joint expedition with him by sea and land, 
though I am certain that his laurels would far exceed mine. 

•Probably the lodge of the Neuf Soeurs, of which he was a member. 



B60 LOVE-LETTERS. 

I mention this, because M. de Genet has both spoken and 

written to me on the subject as from the Count himself. 

" I had the honour to lay a project before the King's 
ministers in the month of May, for future combined expedi- 
tions under the flag of America, and had the satisfaction to 
find that my ideas were approved by them. If the Count, 
your husband will do me the honour to concert with M. de 
Genet, that the court may send with me to America the ap- 
plication that was intended to be made to Congress, con- 
formable to the proposal I made, it would afford me a pleasing 
opportunity of showing my gratitude to the King, to his 
ministers, and to this generous-minded nation. I should be 
greatly proud to owe my success to your own good offices ; 
and would gladly share with your husband the honour that 
might result from our operations. I have within these few 
days had the honour to receive from his Majesty the cross of 
Military Merit, with a sword that is worthy the royal giver, 
and a letter which I ardently wish to deserve. I hold the 
sword in too high estimation to risk its being taken by the 
enemy ; and therefore propose to deposite it in the care of a 
friend. None can be more worthy of that sacred deposite 
than you, Madam ; and if you will do me the honour to be its 
guardian, 1 shall esteem myself under an additional obligation 
to deserve your ribbon, and to prove myself worthy of the title 
of your knight. I promised to send you a particular account of 
my late expedition ; but the late extraordinary events that have 
taken place, with respect to the frigate Alliance, make me wish 
to postpone that relation until after a court-martial in America 
shall have furnished evidence for many circumstances that 
would, from a simple assertion, appear romance and founded 
on vanity. The only reason for the revolt on board the 
Alliance was, because the men were not paid either wages 
or prize-money; and because one or two envious persons 
persuaded them that I had concurred with M. de Chaumont 
to defraud them, and to keep them in Europe during the war, 



LOVE-LETTERS. 361 

which, God knows, was not true. For I was bound directly 
for America ; and far from concurring with M. de Chaumont, 
I had not even written or spoken to him, but had highly re- 
sented his mean endeavours to keep the poor men out of their 
just rights, which was the only business that brought me to 
court in April. 

" If I am to have the honour of writing you from beyond 
sea, you will find that the cipher I had the honour to send 
you may be necessary ; because I would not wish all my in- 
formations to be understood, in case my letters should fall 
into the hands of the enemy. I shall communicate no idea in 
cipher that will offend even such great delicacy as yours ; 
but as you are a philosopher, and as friendship has nothing to 
do with sex, pray what harm is there in wishing to have the 
picture of a friend ? Present, I pray, my best respects to the 
Count. If we are hereafter to be concerned together in war, 
I hope my conduct will give him satisfaction; at any rate I 
hope for the honour of his friendship. Be assured that I shall 
ever preserve for you the most profound esteem and the most 
grateful respect Paul Jones." 

The lady waived the honour of being constituted guardian 
of the gold sword ; and whatever her influence with the 
Chevalier might have been, it now declined rapidly. From 
the Road of Groix Jones wrote to her in the following well- 
considered and measured terms ; and, from his next letters, 
it appears that, the correspondence henceforth languished on 
bis side : — 

«* Paul Jones to the Countess de Lavendal. 

" Ariel, Road of Groix, September 21, 1780. 

" Madam, — I was honoured with the very polite letter that 

/our Ladyship condescended to write me on the 5th of last 

month. I am sorry that you have found it necessary to refuse 

me the honour of accepting the deposite mentioned in my last 

31 



362 COUNTESS DE LAVENDAL. 

but am determined to follow your advice, and be myself its 
guardian. I have been detained in this open road by contrary 
and stormy winds since the 4th of this month. There is this 
moment an appearance of a fair opportunity, and I will 
eagerly embrace it. I have received a letter from the first 
minister, very favourable to the project I mentioned to you, 
and you may depend on my utmost interest with Congress to 
bring the matter to issue. I am sure that assembly will with 
pleasure say all yourself or the Count could wish respecting 
the Count, if my scheme is adopted. 

" I have the satisfaction to inform you, that, by the testi- 
mony of all the persons just arrived in four ships at L'Orient 
from Philadelphia, the Congress and all America appeared to 
be warmly my friends ; and my heart, conscious of its own^ 
uprightness, tells me I shall be well received. Deeply and 
gratefully impressed with a sense of what I owe to you and 
your husband's attentions and good wishes, and ardently 
desiring to merit your friendship and the love of this nation by 
my whole conduct through life, 

" I remain, Madam, &c. &c. 

" P. S. — I will not fail to write whenever I have anything 
worth your reading ; at the same time, may I hope to be 
honoured now and then with a letter from you, directed to 
Philadelphia. I was selfish in begging you to write me in 
French, because your letters would serve me as an exercise. 
Your English is correct and even elegant."* 

Long afterwards his correspondence with the Countess is 
thus ceremoniously resumed : — 

* The above letter is addressed, in the copy before us, to the Countess de 
Bourbon. It is, however, obviously intended for the Countess de Lavendal. 
Paul Jones could not have been in correspondence with two different ladies to 
whom he would have wished to intrust " the deposite." 



M. GENET. 363 

Captain Paul Jones to M. de Genet, enclosing Letters to the Countess de 
Lavendal and the Marquis de Castries. 

" Triomphant, Porto la Bello, February 28, 1783. 
" Dear Sir, — I had the honour to receive your favour of 
the 16th May, 1781, only a few days before I launched the 
America at Portsmouth. Perhaps Colonel Lawrence, (who 
is no more,) in the warmth of his public zeal, had forgot my 
letter, and carried it with him to the fate of Cornwallis. My 
mind was so much on the stretch from receiving your letter 
till I reached Boston, that you will, I hope, excuse my silence. 
I expected to have written by the Iris; but the stormy 
weather after leaving Boston rendered it impossible to put 
letters on board, and I had not a moment's time before w r e 
left the port. I leave the seal of my- letter to the Marquis de 
Castries open, that you may read it yourself, and show T it to 
the Countess de Lavendal before you seal and deliver it. She 
will there see that invincible obstacles have defeated my pro- 
jects, which I have pursued with unremitting attention. I am 
happy that my little present was accepted by Miss Sophy* 
with so much favour, and that it was taken in good part by 
her family and intended husband. I am not surprised that 
your son-in-law is a worthy man. It could not be otherwise, 
since he has your approbation, and is the choice of the young 
lady. From the complexion of the King of England's speech 
of the 5th December, the war ought now to be at an end. I 
hope and sincerely wish it, for humanity has need of peace. 
But if the war should continue, it is not impossible that I may 
command again before it is finished. Returning my respect- 
ful compliments to all your family, and to Miss Edes ; and 
still hoping to revisit France, T am, 

" Dear Sir, &c. &c. 

•« M. de Genet, Versailles." 



* A daughter of M. Genet. 



364 COUNTESS DE LAVENDAL. 

" Captain Paul Jones to the Countess de Lavendal, enclosed in the above. 
« Triomphant, Porto Cabello, February 28, 1783. 

" I received.. Madam, a short time before I left North 
America, from M. Genet, a letter, dated Versailles, 18th May, 
1781, containing a message from your Ladyship respecting 
the military projects I had in contemplation in connexion 
with the Count when I left Versailles. As nothing could add 
more to my disappointment than a supposition on your part 
that I had not pursued these objects with constant zeal, I 
have desired M. Genet to put into your hands, before it is 
delivered to the person for whom it is directed, a letter, by 
which you will see that invincible obstacles alone have pre- 
vented the full operation of my schemes, which, till very 
lately, have always been supported by hope. I now think 
the war at an end ; but if it should continue, I shall not volun- 
tarily remain out of the busy scene, and I am still of opinion 
my former projects might be adopted with public utility. I 
can, however, promise nothing, but that my principles are 
invariably the same. I hope to return to France, and am 
persuaded you will rather feel compassion for my disap- 
pointment than withdraw from me any part of your esteem. 

" I am, Madam, with sentiments of the most profound re* 
spect, &c. &c. 

" To the Countess de Laven&aV 

In reference to her husband, this lady had evidently formed 
expectations from Paul Jones which he never possessed the 
power to realize ; and which, it is to be presumed, arose 
rather from the strength of her own wishes, than from false 
hopes held out by her admirer. How he could have proposed 
to connect himself with a man of no professional eminence, 
whom, when the idea was formed, he had never seen, and 
from Miss Edes' report, supposed a fool, must be left to 



MARQUIS DE CASTRIES. 365 

£h« sagacity of the reader, and will, perhaps, require his in- 
dulgence. 

The letter sent for the perusal of the Countess does not ap- 
pear much in point, nor could it have proved very satisfac- 
tory to her. 

" Captain Paul Jones to the Marquis de Castries, enclosed to M. Genet, for 
the perusal of the Countess de Lavendal. 

" Triomphant, Porto Cabello, 28th February, 1783. 
" My Lord Marquis, — You have no doubt been officially 
informed of the act of Congress presenting the America to 
his Majesty, to replace the Magnifique, when that ship was 
lost at Boston. Perhaps you may have also heard, that soon 
after my return from France to Philadelphia, in the Ariel, I 
was unanimously elected by Congress to command the 
America. It was proposed by his Excellency, Mr. Morris, 
Minister of Marine, to arm the America en Jlute, and send 
her to Brest in December, 1781, with a cargo of large masts, 
fit for ships of the line, to be armed for war, &c. But when 
I arrived at Portsmouth, I found the ship not half built, and 
all the materials were wanting to finish the construction. 
Instead of commanding a fine ship, and being attended by 
frigates belonging to the continent, the inspection of the con- 
struction fell entirely upon me, almost without money or 
materials to carry it on. I had been thus employed for six- 
teen months before the act of Congress presenting the Ame- 
rica to the King deprived me of that command. It was 
thought that act of Congress must give me pain, but those 
who were of that opinion did not well know my character. 
It was a sacrifice I made with pleasure, to testify my grate- 
ful regard for his Majesty, and my invariable attention and 
zeal to promote the common cause. I continued my inspec- 
tion till the America was launched, and having then delivered 
her to M. de Martigne, appointed by his Excellency the 
Marquis de Vaudreuil, I set out for Philadelphia. A project 
31* 



366 COUNTESS DE LAVENDAL. 

was then in contemplation between Mr. Morris and the 
Chevalier de la Luzerne, for employing me immediately with 
a command of some frigates ; but not being able to get the 
South Carolina frigate out of the hands of Mr. Gillan, their 
project did not succeed. Thus disappointed, I applied to 
Congress to send me back to Boston to make a campaign for 
my instruction on board his Majesty's fleet. Congress having 
passed an act for that purpose, I returned to Boston the day 
before the fleet sailed, with letters from the Minister of 
Marine, and the Chevalier de la Luzerne, to his Excellency 
the Marquis de Vaudreuil, who kindly received me as a 
volunteer on board of his ship. I have been so handsomely 
treated, both by him and the officers, both of the fleet and 
army, that they leave me nothing more to wish for from 
them. I am directed to return to Philadelphia when the cam- 
paign is ended, unless, in the meantime, I should receive 
orders to the contrary. I beseech you to assure his Majesty, 
that I will eagerly embrace every opportunity to testify by 
my conduct the high sense I have of the honourable marks 
conferred on me of his favour and esteem, and that I feel 
a superior obligation for the many marks of his bounty. — 
I am, 

"My Lord Marquis, 

with profound respect, &c. 
" To his Excellency the Marquis 
de Castries" fyc. 

Of the Countess de Lavendal we learn no more ; nor would 
the affair have been worth notice, were it not already before 
the public. The motives which led to the earlier part of this 
correspondence cannot be mistaken ; nor is the address dis- 
played in the attempt to give the affair a turn much to be 
commended, unless, as seems extremely probable, the coquetry 
of the lady, and her retention of the gifts she disclaims in 
words, justify the affected astonishment of an admirer whose 



DELIA'S ATTACHMENT. 367 

vanity was to all appearance more interested than his serious 
affections. If the apology be offered for this correspondence, 
that Paul Jones did not understand French manners, this will 
more strongly justify the lady than her admirer ; and it is to 
be feared that another aggravation is its being simultaneous 
with that of the devoted Delia, the anonymous lady already 
mentioned. 

Delia has so dexterously preserved her incognita, that it is 
scarce possible, even if it were important, to ascertain her 
real condition. Her letters which are preserved appear to 
have been written to Jones while at L'Orient, and when he 
was supposed on the eve of sailing for America. These 
epistles, which are warmly passionate, breathe the eloquence 
of deep and genuine feeling, and display the boundless gene- 
rosity of a devoted if not very discreet attachment ; but they, 
at the same time, discover a larger experience in " affairs of 
the heart" than was likely to be possessed or acknowledged 
by a very young woman, and habits of life which intimate 
more independence and freedom than custom permitted to 
any unmarried French girl, if above the very lowest rank. 
Delia appears to have received the visits of gentlemen, — a 
privilege enjoyed only by married women or widows ; and 
she alludes to her income of eight thousand livres (no small 
fortune in those days) as if it were under her sole and uncon- 
trolled command. She alleges her liberality of disposition as 
the cause of her narrow fortune, and thus warrants the con- 
clusion, that her conduct was perfectly independent of control. 
Her extreme apprehension lest her letters or her portrait 
should be seen, which is repeatedly expressed, is but a natural 
and becoming female feeling, from which nothing can be sur- 
mised of her real character and condition. It was a duty 
that her lover owed to her memory, or, if she survived him 
to the memory of their attachment, to have placed this warm 
and animated correspondence beyond the power of either 
misrepresentation or derision. 



368 DELIA'S ATTACHMENT. 

In the American Memoir of Paul Jones republished in Lon- 
don, it is said, " the Commodore grew alarmed when the lady 
proposed to follow him to America." Her original letters, 
which Paul Jones has preserved with a care he was not likely 
to have bestowed on those of a person to whom he was in- 
different, bear no trace of any proposition so indecorous. In 
the most fervid of her eloquent compositions, with an abund- 
ant lack of discretion, there is no symptom of indelicacy. 
Her distress, her agonies at parting with her lover, are very 
frankly proclaimed, but she contemplates no such termination 
of her misery as an elopement. " Heaven," she says, " will 
reunite us, and watch over the fate of two beings who love 
faithfully, and whose upright hearts deserve to be happy. I 
incessantly address myself to heaven for your safe arrival irv 
America. If you are satisfied with that government you will 
continue in its service ; if not, resign, and rejoin your faithful 
friend. The whole world besides may forsake you, but her 
heart is eternally yours. You inquire how you can render 
me happy ? — take care of yourself, love me, study the means 
of enabling us to pass our lives together, and never forget 
that my life is bound up in yours." Delia makes her lover 
repeated offers of such assistance as she had the power of 
affording during the exigency of his affairs at L'Orient :— 
" She had trinkets, she had effects," and with the most disin- 
terested spirit she is willing to sacrifice them all. These offers 
are made with grace and delicacy, but it does not appear that 
they were accepted ; and, from a passage in one of her let- 
ters, it would seem that Paul Jones had given her assistance 
of a pecuniary nature. 

It is said by the poet, — 

" Those who greatly love must greatly fear ;" — 

the love of Delia was extreme, and her fears corresponded to 
its excess. The letters of Jones were tolerably frequent for a 
man engaged in quelling a mutiny, and corresponding with a 



THE IRRESISTIBLE LOVE-LETTERS. 369 

coquetish Countess. They appear to have soothed the feais 
of Delia, and filled her with rapturous delight for the mo- 
ment. She alludes to his responding tears, sighs, and verses , 
envies her own portrait in his possession, but as regularly 
relapses into a state of distracting doubt if his silence ex- 
ceeded the period she had fixed for receiving a letter. 

We can perceive no reason for believing " Delia a young 
and high lady of the court ;" but her early letters possess 
those indelible marks of sincerity, and of warmth and gene- 
rosity of feeling, which could not fail to interest, were it pos- 
sible to ascertain who the writer really was. Her memory, 
nevertheless, possesses some claim with that class of readers 
pre-eminently called " gentle ;" nor is it possible to look on 
the tear-stains that blot those crooked characters, traced by 
a hand then trembling with youthful passion, and over which 
the grave must long since have closed, without a feeling of 
pity and kindness for the fair writer, so devoted, so eloquent, 
and probably so unfortunate. 

Of the " irresistible love-letters" of Paul Jones, commem- 
orated by Miss Edes and the London editor, we subjoin one 
specimen, as they have given none. It, we fear, does not 
lessen the suspicion, that, in the case of Delia, the attachment 
at this time was strongest on the wrong side. It is written 
on Christmas-day, — a season for which lovers seldom wait, 
though parted friends often choose on it to make quittance of 
neglected correspondence. 

Paul Jones to Delia. 

"December 25th, 1781. 

" I wrote, my lovely Delia, various letters from Philade! 
phia, the last of which was dated the 20th of June. On the 
26th of that month I was unanimously elected by Congress 
to command the America of 74 guns, on the stocks at Ports- 
mouth, New Hampshire. I superintended the building, whidi 
I find so much more backward than I expected, that a plan 



370 RETURN TO PARIS. 

of operations which I had in view is entirely defeated. I ex 
pected to have been at sea this winter, but the building does 
not go on with the vigour I could wish. Since I came here 
I have not had a single good opportunity to write to Europe. 
This situation is doubly irksome to me, my lovely friend, as it 
stops my pursuit of honour as well as love. It is now more 
than twelve months since I left France, yet I have not re- 
ceived a single letter from thee in all that time, except the 
one written in answer to my letter at taking leave. That 
one is a tender letter indeed, and does honour to thy match- 
less heart. I read often, and always with transport, the many 
charming things that are expressed in thy letters, but especially 
the last. Thy adieu has in it all the finer feelings blended with 
the noblest sentiments of the heart. Providence, all just and 
good, has given thee a soul worthy to animate nature's fairest 
work. I rest, therefore, assured, that absence will not di- 
minish but refine the pure and spotless friendship that binds 
our souls together, and will ever impress each to merit the 
affection of the other. Remember and believe my letter at 
parting ; it was but a faint picture of my heart. I will find 
opportunities to write, and be everything thou canst wish. 
My address is under cover to the Hon. Robert Morris, Esq.. 
Minister of Finance, Philadelphia. 

" I have not since heard of your relation I left behind, but 
suppose he is with the army." 

We cannot tell whether Delia profited or not by this ad- 
dress ; but three years afterwards, when the Chevalier arrived 
in Paris as agent for prize-money, we find her still alive and 
faithful. Paul Jones has preserved her first note, and in his 
own handwriting affixed the date to it : — " From her apart- 
ments in the Boulevard," &c. &c. He had some reason to 
be proud of her fidelity: — this was Paris in 1783. Delia's 
note is exceedingly characteristic of her country, though we 
like its tone much less than that of the earlier effusions of 



MADAME T . 371 

its author : — " Is it possible that you are then so near me, ana 
that I am deprived of the sight of a mortal who has constituted 
the misery of my life for four years 1 — O ! most amiable and 
most ungrateful of men, come 10 your best friend, who burns 
with the desire of seeing you. You ought to know that it is 
but eight days since your Delia was at the brink of the grave 
Come, in the name of Heaven !*' 

It is probable that the Chevalier obeyed this summons, since 
he thought it worth while to preserve the billet in which it is 
conveyed. 

Delia now disappears from the scene as abruptly as the 
" beautiful Countess," unless we are able to indentify her with 
Madame T , a lady for whom, about this time, the Chev- 
alier evinces a warm interest. The supposition, that Madame 

T , a widow, it mav be presumed, from her friendless 

and unprotected state, and Delia, are the same individual, is 
feasible in itself, creditable to both parties, and readily ac- 
counts for all the ambiguities in the letters, and still more in 
the situation of Delia. With Madame T Jones cor- 
responded after his return to America in 1780. Her letters 
to him were sent to the care of the American minister, as 
those of Delia had formerly been. The reader has the ad- 
vantage of being introduced to this lady by Paul Jones him- 
self in the following letter to Mr. Jefferson : — 

" I am much obliged to you for the letter from Madame 
~, which you forwarded by the June packet. I now 



take the liberty to enclose a letter for that worthy lady; and. 
as I had not the happiness to introduce you to her, (because 
I v/ished her fortune to have been previously established,) [ 
shall now tell you in confidence, that she is the daughter of 
the late King and a lady of quality, on whom his Majesty 
bestowed a very large fortune on his daughter's account. 
Unfortunately the father died while the daughter (his great 
favourite) was very young, and the mother has never since 



372 MADAME T . 

shown her either justice or natural affection. She was long 
the silent victim of that injustice ; but I had the pleasure to 
be instrumental in putting her in a fair way to obtain redress. 
His present Majesty received her last year with great kindness. 
He gave her afterwards several particular audiences, and 
said ' he charged himself with her fortune.' Some things 
were, as I have understood, fixed on, that depended solely on 
the King, and he said he would dictate the justice to be ren- 
dered by the mother. But the letter you sent me left the 
feeling author all in tears ! Her friend, her protectress, her 
introductress to the King, was suddenly dead ! She was in 
despair ! She lost more than a mother ! A loss, indeed, that 
nothing can repair ; for fortune and favour are never to be 
compared to tried friendship. I hope, however, she has gone, 
to visit the King in July, agreeably to his appointment given 
her in the month of March. I am persuaded that he would 
receive her with additional kindness, and that her loss would, 
in his mind, be a new claim to his protection, especially as he 
well knows, and has acknowledged, her superior merit and 
just pretensions. As I feel the greatest concern for the situa- 
tion of this worthy lady, you will render me a great favour 
by writing her a note, requesting her to call on you, as you 
have something to communicate from me. When she comes, 
be so good as to deliver the within letter, and show her this, 
that she may see both my confidence in you and my advice 
to her." 

Living so long in Paris or Versailles, it is scarcely possi- 
ble that Paul Jones could have been deceived in the charac- 
ter or pretensions of Madame T , though such is not 

the way in which the daughters " of Louis XV., by ladies of 
quality," were usually treated. It might also be supposed, 
that some trace of this daughter would be found in the nume- 
rous memoirs, letters, and secret histories of the Court of 
France. We are not aware that any such evidence does 
exist. It would, however, be high presumption to limit the num- 



MADAME T . 373 

ber of the illegitimate children of so patriarchal a monarch 
as Louis XV. Madame T ■ was therefore, in all proba- 
bility, one of his numerous descendants, the only inexplicable 
circumstance being, that a daughter, " his great favourite," 
should not otherwise be ever heard of; and that, " very 
young" when her father died, (in 1774,) we should find in her 
either the Delia of L780,or the Madame T , a widow un- 
known or unfriended, of 1786. The lady, her protectress, to 
whom Paul Jones alludes, was, we are incidentally informed, 
the Marchioness de Marssan, to whom he introduced her. 
This lady we should presume to be her of the same name, 
governess to the grand-daughters of Louis XV., and sisters of 
his unfortunate successor. There is, in short, something inex- 
plicable to us in the history of Madame T : The sen- 
timents entertained for her by Paul Jones are, however, abun- 
dantly clear ; they breathe a far more anxious interest than 
that of friendship. The subjoined letter is a copy of that en- 
closed to Madame T in the letter to Mr. Jefferson ; the 

other letter was written to her shortly afterwards. 

" Paul Jones to Madame T . 



" New York, September 4th, 1787. 

" No language can convey to my fair mourner the tender 
sorrow I feel on her account ! The loss of our worthy friend 
is indeed a fatal stroke ! It is an irreparable misfortune which 
can only be alleviated by this one reflection, that it is the will 
of God, whose providence has, I hope, other blessings in store 
for us. She was a tried friend, and more than a mother to 
you ! She would have been a mother to me also had she 
lived. We have lost her ! Let us cherish her memory, and 
send up grateful thanks to the Almighty that we once had such 
a friend. I cannot but flatter myself that you have yourself 

gone to the K in July as he had appointed. 1 am sure your 

loss will be a new inducement for him to protect you, and 
32 



374 LETTER TO MADAME T . 

render you justice. He will hear you, I am sure ; and you 
may safely unbosom yourself to him, and ask his advice, 
which cannot but be flattering to him to give you. Tell him 
you must look on him as your father and protector. If it 

were necessary, I think, too, that the Count d'A ,* his 

brother, would, on your personal application, render you good 
offices by speaking in your favour. I should like it better, 
however, if you can do without him. Mr. Jefferson will show 
you my letter of this date to him. You will see by it how 
disgracefully I have been detained here by the board of 
Treasury. It is impossible for me to stir from this place till 
I obtain their settlement on the business I have already per- 
formed; and as the season is already far advanced, I expect 
to be ordered to embark directly for the place of my destina> 
tion in the North. Mr. Jefferson will forward me your letters. 
I am almost without money, and much puzzled to obtain a 
supply. I have written to Dr. B.,f to endeavour to assist me. 
I mention this with infinite regret, and for no other reason 
than because it is impossible for me to transmit you a supply 
under my present circumstances. This is my fifth letter to 
you since I left Paris. The two last were from France, and 
I sent them by duplicates. But you say nothing of having 
received any letters from me ! Summon, my dear friend, all 
your resolution ! Exert yourself, and plead your own cause. 
You cannot fail of success — your cause would move a heart 
of flint ! Present my best respects to your sister. You did 
not mention her in your letter ; but I persuade myself she will 
continue her tender care of her sweet god-son, and that you 
will cover him all over with kisses from me: they come 
warm to you both from the heart !" 

* Count d'Artois, afterwards Charles X. t Bancroft- 



LETTER TO MADAME T . 375 

To the same. 

New York, October 24, 1787. 

" The last French packet brought no letter to me from the 
person whose happiness is dearer to me than anything else. 
I have been on the rack of fear and apprehension, and am 
totally unable to account for that silence ! My business is 
done here, and the moment of my return to Europe ap- 
proaches. My sentiments are unchanged, and my impatience 
can better be imagined than expressed. I have been honoured 
here beyond my own expectations.* But your silence makes 
even honours insipid. I am, however, far from blaming 
you ; want of health, or some other misfortune, must have 
interposed. If this reaches you, remember me affectionately 
to your sister and her god-son. May Heaven avert all trouble 
from you !" 

Paul Jones almost immediately followed this letter to 
Europe. During his short stay in Paris in the winter of 
1787, he must in all probability have again seen the lady to 
whom it was addressed. Both the letters, as well as that 
sent to Mr. Jefferson, bear testimony how deeply his feelings 
were involved in this attachment, by whatever name it is 
called, love or friendship. Yet it must have terminated un- 
satisfactorily, if not unhappily. From the period of his set- 
ting out for Denmark and Russia, his correspondence bears 

no trace of Madame T ; and by the time he reached 

Amsterdam on his return, this lady must either have been 
forgotten, or deemed unworthy of remembrance. Whether 
this arose from his own conduct or fickleness, or the incon- 
stancy of that friend of whose silence while in America he 
had complained as " making even honours insipid," it is now 
impossible to determine, though on this occasion we are in- 

* See page 198. 



376 DISAPPOINTMENT. 

clined to decide against the lady, should she even be, as we 
have surmised, the " eternally devoted" Delia herself. 

From a letter written by Paul Jones to two ladies whom 
he numbered among his friends, and who had pointedly 
alluded to the supposed state of his affections, and his engage- 
ments in Paris, there is reason to suppose that he may, in ad- 
dition to baffled professional hopes, have suffered disappoint- 
ment of a more tender kind. 

" Paul Jones to Mesdames he Grande and Rinsby, a Trevoux, pres 
de Lion. 

"Paris, Feb. 25,1791. 
H Dear and amiable Ladies, — Madame Clement has read 
me a part of a letter from you, in which you conclude that I 
prefer love to friendship, and Paris to Trevoux. As to the 
first part you may be right, for love frequently communicates 
divine qualities, and in that light may be considered as the 
cordial that Providence has bestowed on mortals, to help 
them to digest the nauseous draught of life. Friendship, 
they say, has more solid qualities than love. This is a ques- 
tion I shall not attempt to resolve-; but sad experience generally 
shows that where we expect to find a friend we have only 
been treacherously deluded by false appearances, and that 
the goddess herself very seldom confers her charms on any 
of the human race. As to the second, I am too much a 
philosopher to prefer noise to tranquillity : if this does not 
determine the preference between Paris and Trevoux, I will 
add, that I have had very bad health almost ever since your 
departure, and that other circumstances have conspired to 
detain me here, which have nothing to do either with love or 
friendship. My health is now recovering, and as what is re- 
tarded is not always lost, I hope soon to have the happiness 
of paying you my personal homage, and of renewing the 
assurance of that undiminished attachment which women or 



A FRANK LETTER. 377 

such distinguished worth and talents naturally inspire. I am, 
in the mean time, dear and amiable Ladies, 

" Your most obedient and most humble 
servant, 

" Paul Jones." 

The lady's answer merits to be preserved. It displays the 
true kindness of female friendship, and the frank politeness of 
a Frenchwoman. 

"Trevoux, 6th March, 1791. 

" Sir, — I had given up the hope of receiving any intelligence 
of your Excellency, and I acknowledge it cost me much be- 
fore I could believe that the promise of a great man was no 
more to be relied on than that of the herd of mankind. The 
letter with which you have honoured me convinces me that 
my heart knew you better than my head ; for though my 
reason whispered that you had quite forgotten us, I was un- 
willing to believe it. 

" Madame Wolfe, as well as myself, is much concerned for 
the bad state of your health. I am sorry that, like myself, 
your Excellency is taught the value of health by sickness. 
Come to us, Sir ; if you do not find here the pleasures you 
enjoy in Paris, you will find a good air, frugal meals, freedom, 
and hearts that can appreciate you. 

" I am concerned to perceive that your Excellency is an 
unbeliever in friendship. Alas, if you want friends, who shall 
pretend to possess them ! I hope you will recover from this 
error, and be convinced that friendship is something more 
than a chimera of Plato. 

" Do me the favour to acquaint me with the time we may 

expect the honour of seeing you. I must be absent for soiikj 

jays, and I would not for anything in the world that I should 

not be here on your arrival. If I .\new the time, I would send 

32* 



878 JONES'S LETTERS TO HIS SISTER. 

my little carriage to meet the stage-coach, as I suppose you 
will take that conveyance. 

" Madame Wolfe expects the moment of your arrival with 
as much eagerness as myself, (she says ;) but as I best know 
my own feelings, I am certain I go beyond her. Of this I 
am certain, that we shall both count the day till we have the 
happiness of seeing you. Come quickly then, I pray you. 

" I beg you, Sir, to receive the assurance of the respectful 
consideration with which I have the honour to be your Ex- 
cellency's most humble and obedient servant." 

The letters of Paul Jones to his sisters in Scotland are those 
in which his private character is most truly and advantage- 
ously seen. With them he had no part to act, no interest to 
pursue. His fraternal r feelings were warm and steady, ancl 
the advice he conveyed to his discordant family, who ac- 
quainted him with their dissensions, as a person to whom 
both parties were disposed to appeal, does equal credit to his 
head and heart. That these letters should display any traits 
of the affectionate, confidential cordiality which render the 
familiar letters of near relatives so delightful, is not to be ex- 
pected. With his sisters he had enjoyed no domestic inter- 
course from boyhood, and he could know little of them by an 
unfrequent interchange of letters. Though not alienated from 
his affections, they were strangers to his tastes, his habits, his 
friends, and modes of life, and it is therefore of their own in- 
terests and affairs only that he chooses to speak to them. 

" Paul Jones to his Sister, Mrs. Taylor. 

"Amsterdam, March 26, 1790. 

" I wrote you, my dear friend, from Paris, by Mr. Ken- 
nedy, who delivered me the kind letter you wrote me by him. 
Circumstances obliged me to return soon afterwards to 
America, and on my arrival at New York, Mr. Thomson 
delivered me a letter that had been intrusted to his care by 
Mrs. Loudon. It would be superfluous to mention the great 



EDUCATION. 379 

satisfaction I received in hearing from two persons I so much 
love and esteem, and whose worthy conduct as wives and 
mothers is so respectable in my eyes. Since my return to 
Europe, a train of circumstances and changes of residence 
have combined to keep me silent. This has given me more 
pain than I can express ; for I have a tender regard for you 
both, and nothing can be indifferent to me that regards your 
happiness and the welfare of your children. I wish for a par- 
ticular detail of their age, respective talents, characters, and 
education. I do not desire this information merely from curi- 
osity. It would afford me real satisfaction to be useful to their 
establishment in life. We must study the genius and inclina- 
tion of the boys, and try to fit them, by a suitable educa- 
tion, for the pursuits we may be .able to adopt for their 
advantage. When their education shall be advanced to a 
proper stage, at the school of Dumfries for instance, it must 
then be determined whether it may be most economical and 
advantageous for them to go to Edinburgh or France to finish 
their studies. All this is supposing them to have great natural 
genius and goodness of disposition ; for without these they 
can never become eminent. For the females, they require 
an education suited to the delicacy of character that is be- 
coming in their sex. I wish I had a fortune to offer to each 
of them ; but though this is not the case, I may yet be useful 
to them. And I desire particularly to be useful to the two 
young women, who have a double claim to my regard, as 
they have lost their father. Present my kind compliments 
to Mrs. Loudon, to her husband, to Mr. Taylor, and your 
two families, and depend on my affectionate attachment. 

" Write me without delay, and having sealed and directed 
your letter as you did the one you .sent me by Mr. Kennedy, 
let it be enclosed in a cover, and direct the cover thus, ' To 
Messieurs Stophorst and Hubbard, Amsterdam.' You will 
inquire if it be necessary to pay a part of the postage in order 
that the letter may be sent to Holland in the packet. I should 



330 JONES'S LETTERS TO HIS SISTER. 

be glad if the two Miss Youngs* would do me the favour to 
write me each a paragraph in your letter, or to write me, if 
they prefer it, each a separate letter, and I should be glad to 
find that they understand and can write the French." 

This letter, like all those to his own family, has no sig- 
nature. 

In the end of this year (1790) we find another of his letters, 
from which, with very great pleasure, we give the following 
extract. The sisters of the Rear- Admiral, who were proba- 
bly both in the wrong, had, it appears, appealed to him in 
their disputes. It is to be hoped they profited by his ad- 
monitions. 

"Paris, December 27th, 1790. 

" I duly received, my dear Mrs. Taylor, your letter of the" 
16th August, but ever since that time I have been unable to 
answer it, not having been capable to go out of my chamber, 
and having been for the most part obliged to keep my bed. 
I have now no doubt but that I am in a fair way of a perfect 
recovery, though it will require time and patience. 

" I shall not conceal from you that your family discord 
aggravates infinitely all my pains. My grief is inexpressible, 
that two sisters, whose happiness is so interesting to me, do 
not live together in that mutual tenderness and affection w r hich 
would do so much honour to themselves and to the memory 
of their w r orthy relations. Permit me to recommend to your 
serious study and application Pope's Universal Prayer. You 
will find more morality in that little piece than in many 
volumes that have been written by great divines — 

* Teach me to feel another's wo, 

To hide the fault I see ; 
That mercy I to others show, 

Such mercy show to me ." 

" This is not the language of a weak superstitious mind, 

* His orphan nieces alluded to above. 



ILL HEALTH IN PARIS. 381 

out the spontaneous offspring of true religion, springing from 
a heart sincerely inspired by charity, and deeply impressed 
with a sense of the calamities and frailties of human nature. 
If the sphere in which Providence has placed us as members 
of society requires the exercise of brotherly kindness and 
charity towards our neighbour in general, how much more 
is this our duty with respect to individuals with whom we are 
connected by the near and tender ties of nature as well as 
moral obligation. Every lesser virtue may pass away, but 
charity comes from heaven, and is immortal. Though I wish 
to be the instrument of making family-peace, which I flatter 
myself would tend to promote the happiness of you all, yet I 
by no means desire you to do violence to your own feelings, 
by taking any step that is contrary to your own judgment 
and inclination. Your reconciliation must come free from 
your heart, otherwise it will not last, and therefore it will be 
better not to attempt it. Should a reconciliation take place, 
I recommend it of all things, that you never mention past 
grievances, nor show, by word, look, or action, that you have 
not forgot them." 

From this time Paul Jones never quitted Paris. His con- 
tinual bad health, and the state of France, and of the capital, 
torn by faction, — the threatening shadow of those evil days, 
which were so soon to follow, already lowering over it, — 
alike enjoined retirement from society. It does not appear 
to what political party he was attached, though it is probable 
that of the Girondists, which was the legitimate offspring of 
the American revolution, had his good wishes, tempered by 
strong feelings of personal attachment and gratitude towards 
the amiable Prince who had shown him such distinguished 
marks of favour. He had never appeared at court from the 
time of his return from Russia ; and if he appeared at all, it 
was only once, which must have been a very few months be- 
fore his death. The scroll of a letter, dated December 7th, 
1791, to the Marquis of La Fayette, remains among his 



382 ATTACHMENT TO LOUIS XVI. 

papers, and explains his situation and his loyal and grateful 
feelings, and proves that, as this crisis drew near, he took the 
generous part. The Marquis at this time, from his official 
situation, was constantly in the Palace. 

" Rear- Admiral Paul Jones to the Marquis de La Fayette* 

" Paris, December 7th, 1791. 
" Dear General, — My ill health for some time past has 
, -revented me from the pleasure of paying you my personal 
respects, but I hope shortly to indulge myself with that satis- 
faction. 

" I hope you approve the quality of the fur-linings I brought 
from Russia for the King and yourself. I flatter myself that 
his Majesty will accept from your hand that little mark of 
the sincere attachment I feel for his person ; and be assured, 
that I shall be always ready to draw the sword with which 
he honoured me for the service of the virtuous and illustrious 
' Protector of the Rights of Human Nature.' 

" When my health shall be re-established, M. Simolin will 
do me the honour to present me to his Majesty as a Russian 
Admiral. Afterwaids it will be my duty, as an American 
officer, to wait on his Majesty with the letter which I am 
directed to present to him from the United States. 
" I am, dear General, 

With sincere friendship, 

Your affectionate and 

Most humble servant." 

From the mutilated fragment of an angry but. very ener- 
getic letter, addressed to the Minister of Marine, we gather 
that the claims of Paul Jones on the French government still 
remained unsettled, which was indeed the case at his death, 
and that he had been treated with indignity as well as denied 
justice. The following letter, which introduces this warm 
statement of injuries, has peculiar interest, as it is presumed 



CLAIMS ON FRENCH GOVERNMENT. 383 

to be the last effusion of his pen. It does not appear to 
whom this letter was addressed, though it might probably be 
to the Minister of Marine for the time. It proves that, how- 
ever sunk in health and hope, the writer retained the same 
keenness of temper and acuteness of mind which distinguished 
him at all periods. 

'* Rear-Admiral Paul Jones to the Minister of the French Marine. 

"Paris, March, 1792. 

" Sir, — In the beginning of the administration of your pre- 
decessor, I informed him, that this government, not having 
paid the salary due to a part of the crew of the Bon Homme 
Richard at the time when they were discharged from the 
service, they had been paid on their arrival at Boston ; and 
having myself been sent back here after the war, under a 
special commission from the United States, to settle the claims 
of my crews, I presented a memorial, reclaiming that part 
of the salary that had never been reimbursed. The Minister 
held me in suspense for about five months, and then, to my 
great surprise, instead of satisfying my just demand, he ad- 
dressed me in a very uncivil letter, treating me, as I con- 
ceive, like a schoolboy, and permitting himself to cast unjust 
and uncivil reflections on my past conduct. My health did 
not permit me to answer him immediately ; but I had pre- 
pared a letter, and was just going to send it, when I learned 
that he had resigned his place as the Minister of the Marine, 
and that you were named as his successor. 

" I request the favour, sir, that you may read his letter and 
my answer ; after which I persuade myself you will do jus- 
tice to my first demand, which is merely official. As to my 
personal pretensions, I never should have set up a claim on 
that score under circumstances less affecting to my sensibility. 
Of this I need offer no other proof than my silence in that 
respect for twelve years past. My losses and unavoidable 
expenses during my long connexion with this nation amount 



384 SERVICES RECOUNTED, 

to a large sum, and have greatly lessened my fortune. I 
have given solemn proofs of my great attachment towards 
France, and that attachment still remains undiminished. I 
persuade myself that I may with full assurance repose my 
interests through your ministry on the national justice. 

" I have the honour to be," &c. &c. 

The beginning of the letter referred to above is wanting, 
as well as the letter of the minister which drew forth the 
following pithy reply. What of it remains entire commences 
with the " risks" of the writer in the Texel " for three months 
together, blocked," he says, " within by the fleet of Holland, 
and without by the fleets of England, while my head was 
rendered a prize to excite private treachery and avarice. 
My fortitude and self-denial alone dragged Holland into the- 
war, — a service of the greatest importance to this nation ; 
for without that great event no calculation can ascertain 
when the war would have ended. 

" Would you suppose, sir, that my prisoners, 600 in num- 
ber, were treacherously taken out of my hands in the Texel, 
with two of my prizes, a new ship of war, pierced for 56 
guns, and a frigate of 24 guns in one battery ? — Would you 
suppose that I was driven out of the Texel in a single frigate 
belonging to the United States, in the face of 42 English 
ships, and vessels posted to cut off my retreat 1 — My prisoners 
were disposed of without my consent, and contrary to my 
intention. My prizes were all wrested out of my hands, and 
some of them, particularly the ship of 56 guns, degraded 
and cut to pieces before my eyes, and in contempt of my 
authority, though that ship, by the laws of the American flag, 
was the exclusive property of the captors. 

" You appear, sir, to treat me like a school-boy, when you 
say, — t J i ai Vhonneur de vous observer, monsieur, qu'il est 
toujours oVusage de payer directement aux marins le decompte 
des salaires qui leur reviennent au desarmement des batimens.* 



COMPLAINTS. 385 

I could not have supposed, sir, that you had thought me so 
ignorant as to need that information seventeen years after I 
was first honoured with the rank of captain in the navy. * 

" Though my crews were almost naked, and I had no 
money to administer to their wants, yet my constant appli- 
cation to Court for two months produced no relief, no pay- 
ment whatever, either for salary or prize-money. I was on 
the point of sailing back to America, without any appearance 
of obtaining justice, — without the least acknowledgment, 
direct or indirect, that the Court was satisfied wtth my ser 
vices ! — Under these circumstances, in a moment of despair 
I came to Court to demand satisfaction. 

" The Minister of the United States accompanied me to 
M. Sartine, who gave us a reception as cold as ice, did not 
say to me a single word, nor ask me if my health had not 
suffered from my wounds and the uncommon fatigue I had 
undergone. The public did me more justice than the 
minister ; and I owe to the King alone the flattering marks 
of distinction with which I was honoured, — a gold sword, 
and the Order of Military Merit. 

" But I solicited in vain for salary and prize-money ; and 
the Minister of Marine detained me so long at Court, that 
the crew of the American frigate I had left at L'Orient, 
despairing to obtain redress, revolted, and carried that frigate 
back to America. * * * # 

" Tt is true, the Marquis de Castries pretended for a long 
time that I should give him security for the prize-money ; 
but I at last made him recede from the absurdity of that de 
mand. I was detained in Europe four years ; and having in 
that time spent sixty thousand livres of my own money, I re 
ceived for my share of all the prizes, as commander of the 
Bon Homme, thirteen thousand livres ! * * * 

Permit me, by way of comparison, just to mention the treat- 
ment the French officers received who served in the Ameri- 
33 



386 LAST ILLNESS. 

can army. The war had been carried on for several years 
by the Americans alone, and there is no instance where the 
United States invited a Fren< h officer to enter into their ser- 
vice. Such as presented themselves and were accepted, have 
all of them bettered their situation by that connexion. At 
the end of the war they received a gratification of five years' 
pay, the Order of Cincinnatus, and a lot of land ; and they 
now enjoy grades far superior to what they could have 
attained under other circumstances. If we except the Mar- 
quis de la Fayette, none of them were rich when they went 
to America. They are all now in easy circumstances. In 
short, they have been treated much better than the Americans 
themselves, who served from the beginning to the end of the 
Revolution. 

" I hope and desire, sir, that you may lay this letter before 
the King. It contains many things out of the general rule 
of delicacy which marks my proceedings, and which, on any 
occasion less affecting to my sensibility, would never have 
escaped from my tongue or pen." 

From about this time the health of Paul Jones sunk 
rapidly. Symptoms of jaundice appeared, — a disease which 
not unfrequently follows mental chagrin and disappointment. 
It does not, however, appear that he was long confined. 
About the beginning of July dropsical symptoms supervened 
on his other disorders, and he expired on the evening of the 
18th of that month. Though far from those on whose affec- 
tion he had a natural claim, his dying hours were not un- 
solaced by the constant and tender offices of friendship. 

Many idle rumours connected with his death have been 
circulated, as if his latter days had been spent in extreme pov- 
erty, chilling neglect, and entire abandonment. These are of 
a piece with the other calumnies and marks of obloquy with 
which his memory and character have been loaded. The 
subjoined letters and documents afford a simple and an ample 



PROPERTY. 387 

refutation of charges and assumptions made, probably, as 
much in ignorance as malice. 

" Letter of M. Beaupoil to either Mrs. Taylor or Mrs. Loudon, Sisters of Paul 
Jones, Esq., Admiral in the Russian Service. 

" Madam, — I am sorry to acquaint you that your brother, 
Admiral Paul Jones, my friend, paid, yesterday, the debt we 
all owe to nature. He has made a will, which is deposited in 
the hands of Mr. Badinier, notary, St. Servin Street, Paris. 
The will was drawn in English, by Mr. Gouverneur Morris, 
Minister of the United States, and translated faithfully by 
the French notary aforesaid. The Admiral leaves his pro- 
perty, real and personal, to his two sisters and their children. 
They are named in the will as being married, one to William 

Taylor, and the other to Loudon, of Dumfries. The 

executor is Mr. Robert Morris of Philadelphia. If I could be 
of any service to you in this business, out of the friendship I 
bore your brother, I '11 do it with pleasure. I am a French- 
man and an officer. I am sincerely yours, 

" Beaupoil. 

" Paris, July 19, 1792, No. 7, H6tel Anglais, 
Passage des Petits Peres. 

" The English will is signed by Colonels Swan, Blackden, 
and myself. The schedule of his property lying in Denmark, 
Russia, France, America, and elsewhere, is signed by Mr. 
Morris, and deposited by me in his bureau, with the original 
will. Everything is sealed up at his lodgings, Tournon Street, 
No. 42, Paris. 

" You may depend also on the good services of Colonel 
Blackden, who was an intimate friend of the Admiral's. That 
gentleman is setting out for London, where you may hear ot 
him at No. 18, Great Tichfield Street, London." 

On receiving this letter, Mrs. Taylor wrote to ColoneJ 
Blackden in London, and obtained a reply in com se of post 



388 COL. BLACKDEN'S LETTER. 

" Colonel Blackden to Mrs. Taylor of Dumfries, eldest Sister of Adviirai 
Paul Jones. 

•* Great Tichfield Street, 

London, Aug. 9th. 

" Madam, — i had the honour of receiving your letter of the 
3d instant, and shall answer you most readily. Your brother, 
Admiral Jones, was not in good health for about a year, but 
had not been so unwell as to keep house. For two months 
past he began to lose his appetite, to grow yellow, and show 
signs of the jaundice ; for this he took medicine, and seemed 
to grow better i but about ten days before his death his legs 
began to swell, which increased upwards, so that two days 
before his exit he could not button his waistcoat, and had 
great difficulty of breathing. 

" I visited him every day, and, beginning to be apprehen- 
sive of his danger, desired him to settle his affairs; but this 
he put off till the afternoon of his death, when he was pre- 
vailed on to send for a notaire, and made his will. Mr. Beau- 
poil and myself witnessed it at about eight o'clock in the eve- 
ning, and left him sitting in a chair. A few minutes after we 
retired he walked into his chamber, and laid himself upon his 
face, on the bed-side, with his feet on the floor ; alter the 
Queen's physician arrived, they went into the room, and found 
him in that position, and upon taking him up, they found he 
had expired. 

" His disorder had terminated in dropsy of the breast. His 
body was put into a leaden coffin on the twentieth, that in 
case the United States, whom he had so essentially served, 
and with so much honour to himself, should claim his remains, 
they might be more easily removed. This is all, Madam, that 
[ can say concerning his illness and death. 

" I most sincerely condole with you, Madam, upon the loss 
of my dear and respectable friend, for whom I entertained the 
greatest affection, and as a proof of it, you may command the 



ELOGE. 389 

utmost exertion of my feeble abilities, which shall be rendered 
with cheerfulness. 

" I have the honour to be, 
Madam, 
Your most obedient humble servant, 

" S. Blackden." 

The American Ambassador, Gouverneur Morris, did not 
think it necessary to claim the remains of Admiral Jones, nor 
did the United States. As a protestant and heretic, it was 
still, we believe, necessary to obtain liberty of burial in con- 
secrated ground, and this was probably done. The National 
Assembly paid his memory the honour of sending a deputation 
of twelve of their body to attend the funeral. He was buried 
at Paris on the 20th July, and the following funeral discourse 
was pronounced over his grave by Mr. Marron, a protestant 
clergyman of Paris. 

(Translation.) 

u Discourse pronounced by Mr. Marron, officiating Protestant Clergyman, at 
the Funeral of Admiral Paul Jones, July 20, 1792, in Paris. 

" Legislators ! citizens ! soldiers ! friends ! brethren ! and 
Frenchmen ! we have just returned to the earth the remains 
of an illustrious stranger, one of the first champions of the 
liberty of America, of that liberty which so gloriously ushered 
in our own. The Semiramis of the north had drawn him 
under her standard, but Paul Jones could not long breathe the 
pestilential air of despotism ; he preferred the sweets of a 
private life in France, now free, to the eclat of titles and of 
honours, which, from an usurped throne, were lavished upon 
him by Catherine. The fame of the brave outlives him, his 
portion is immortality. What more flattering homage could 
we pay to the manes of Paul Jones, than to swear on his 
tomb to live or to die free ? It is the vow, it is the watchword 
of every Frenchman. 
33* 



390 PAUL JONES'S WILL. 

" Let never tyrants, nor their satellites, pollute this sacred 
earth ! May the ashes of the great man, too soon lost to 
humanity, and eager to be free, enjoy here an undisturbed re- 
pose ! Let his example teach posterity the efforts which noble 
souls are capable of making, when stimulated by hatred to 
oppression. Friends and brethren, a noble emulation bright- 
ens in your looks ; your time is precious, the country is in 
danger I Who amongst us would not shed the last drop of 
their blood to save it? Associate yourselves to the glory of 
Paul Jones, in imitating him in his contempt of dangers, in 
his devotedness to his country, in his noble heroism, which, 
after having astonished the present age, will continue to be 
the imperishable object of the veneration of future genera 
tions !" 

(Translated from the French.) 
" Testament of Paul Jones, ]Sth July, 1792. 

" Before the undersigned notaries, at Paris, appeared Mr. 
John Paul Jones, citizen of the United States of America, re- 
sident at present in Paris, lodged in the street of Tournon, 
No. 42, at the house of Mr. Dorberque, huissier audiancier 
of the tribunal of the third arrondissement, found in a parlour 
in the first story above the floor, lighted by two windows 
opening on the said street of Tournon, sitting in an arm-chair, 
sick of body, but sound of mind, memory, and understanding 
as it appeared to the undersigned notaries by his discourse 
and conversation, — 

" Who, in view of death, has made, dictated, and worded, 
to the undersigned notaries, his testament as follows : — 

" I give and bequeath all the goods, as w r ell moveable as 
Heritable, and all, generally, whatever may appertain to me at 
my decease, in whatever country they may be situated, to 
my two sisters, Janet, spouse to William Taylor, and Mary, 
wife to Mr. Loudon, and to the children of my said sisters, to 



PAUL JONES'S WILL. 391 

divide them into as many portions as my said sisters and their 
children shall make up individuals, and to be enjoyed by them 
in the following manner : — 

" My sisters, and those of their children, who on the day 
of my death shall have reached the age of twenty-one, will 
enjoy their share in full property from the date of decease. 
As for those of my nephews and nieces who at that period 
of time may not reach the age of twenty-one years, their 
mothers will enjoy their shares till such time as they attain 
that said age, with charge to them to provide for their food, 
maintenance, and education; and as soon as any of my 
nephews or nieces will have reached the age of twenty-one 
years, the same will enjoy his share in full property. 

" If one or more of my nephews and nieces should happen 
to die without children before having reached the age of 
twenty-one, the share of those of them who may have de- 
ceased shall be divided betwixt my said sisters and my other 
nephews and nieces by equal portions. 

" I name the honourable Robert Morris, Esq. of Philadel- 
phia, my only testamentary executor. 

" I revoke all other testaments or codicils which I may 
have made before the present, which alone I stand by as con- 
taining my last will. 

" So made, dictated, and worded, by said testator, to the 
said notaries undersigned, and afterwards read, and read over 
again lo him by one of them, the other being present, wnich 
he well understood, and persevered in, at Paris, the year 
1792, the 18th July, about five o'clock afternoon, in the room 
heretofore described, and the said testator signed the original 
of the present, unregistrated, at Paris the 25th September, 
1792, by Defrance, who received one livre, provisionally, 
save to determine definitively the right after the declaration 
of the revenue of the testator. The original remained with 
Mr Pottier, one of the notaries at Paris, undersigned, wht/ 



392 SCHEDULE OF JONES'S PROPERTY. 

delivered these presents this day, 2Gth September, 1792, first 
of the French Republic. Pottier. 

" (Signed) L'A vernier." 

(Copy.) 

" Schedule of the Property of Admiral John Paul Jones, as stated by him to 
me this ISth of July, 1792. 

" 1st, Bank stock in the Bank of North America, at Phila- 
delphia, 6000 dollars, with sundry dividends. 

" 2d, Loan-Office certificate left with my friend John Ross 
of Philadelphia, for 2000 dollars at par, with great arrear- 
ages of interest, being for ten or twelve years. 

" 3d, Such balance as may be in the hands of my said 
friend, John Ross, belonging to me, and sundry effects left in 
his care. 

" 4th, My lands in the State of Vermont. 

" 5th, Shares m the Ohio Company. 

" 6th, Shares in the Indiana Company. 

"7th, About 1800/. sterling due to me from Edward Ban- 
croft, unless paid by him to Sir Robert Herries, and is then 
in his hands. 

" 8th, Upwards of four years of my pension due from 
Denmark, to be asked from the Count de Bernstorf. 

" 9th, Arrearages of my pay from the Empress of Russia, 
and all my prize-money. 

" 10th, The balance due to me by the United States of 
America, and sundry claims in Europe, which will appear 
from my papers. 

" This is taken from his mouth. 

(Signed) " Govr. Morris, 

" Ambassador from the United State* 
to the Court of France." 

The manners and moral character of Paul Jones have been 
the frequent subject of discussion and of very contradictory 



CHARACTER. 393 

statements. His professional talents and personal appearance 
are less the topics of dispute. It is agreed that he was about the 
middle size, slightly made, but active and agile, and in youth 
capable of considerable exertion and fatigue. In advancing 
life, though he continued equally hardy and active in his habits, 
it was the vehement, fiery spirit that o'er-informed its shattered 
tenement ; and after almost every journey we find him suffer- 
ing from cold and fatigue, or having serious illnesses. He was 
of the complexion usually united with dark hair and eyes, 
which his were; but his skin had become embrowned by 
exposure from boyhood to all varieties of weather and 
of climate. His physiognomical expression indicated that 
promptitude and decision in action which were striking 
characteristics of his mind. His bust is said to be a good 
likeness ; his portrait, painted in America, and probably a 
very indifferent resemblance, exhibits a rather precise-looking 
little man. The style of the highly-powdered hair, or wig, 
would, however, convert Achilles himself into a pedant or a 
petit maitre. 

In manners Paul Jones has been described by one party 
as stiff, finical, and conceited ; by another as arrogant, brutal, 
and quarrelsome. The first statement may have some colour 
of truth, the last is impossible. He had reached manhood 
before he could have had much intercourse with polite society ; 
and manners, formed so late in life on the fashionable models 
of Paris and Versailles, may have sat somewhat stiffly on the 
Anglo-American, who, in giving up his own republican sim- 
plicity, and professional openness and freedom, might not have 
acquired all the ease and grace, even if he did attain the ele- 
gance and polish of French manners ; but his appearance and 
manners must have been those of a gentleman. Mauvais ton, 
to a certain degree, might have been tolerated in a seaman 
and a foreigner ; but " rudeness, arrogance, and brutality/' 
must have proved an effectual barrier of exclusion from those 
polite and courtly circles where Paul Jones was not only 



394 CHARACTER. 

received but welcomed; and into which he made his own 
way, and maintained his place, long after he had lost the 
gloss and resistless attraction of novelty. The letter of Ma- 
dame Rinsby, and other published documents, prove the foot- 
ing he held in respectable French female society to his death, 
and are quite conclusive as to the propriety of his manners. 
He has again been described as " grossly ignorant." No one 
who pursues his career, or peruses his letters, can for a mo- 
ment believe a charge so absurd. From his first appearance 
as a ship-boy he must have been set down as a very clever 
and promising lad ; and if not a prodigy of learning, which 
was an impossibility, he had far more literature than was iX 
all usual in his day, even in the very highest ranks of his pro- 
fession. His verses are far from despicable. Baron Grimms 
we think, overrates them, yet he was an admirable critic. 
They were found amusing and agreeable in polished society, 
which is the very best test and use of occasional verse, namely, 
of all such verse as the public can well spare, and his muse 
was humanizing to his own mind. We like his prose better 
than his verse. It is often admirable if struck off at one hit, 
particularly when the writer gets warm, and gives way to 
his feelings of indignation. It is said, that a minister, in read- 
ing the despatches of Lord Collingwood, who went to sea at 
twelve years of age, used to ask, " Where has Collingwood 
got his style ? — He writes better than any of us." With fully 
more propriety many of the members of Congress, so far as 
regarded their own compositions and resolves, might have put 
a similar question in relation to Paul Jones. He is allowed 
to have been kind and attentive to his crews, and generous 
and liberal in all pecuniary transactions of a private nature ; 
though his correspondence shows that he was commendably 
tenacious of his pecuniary claims on states and public bodies. 
His memoirs afford some pleasing instances of his kindness 
to his prisoners, and of his desire to rescue them from the 
fangs oi agents and commissaries. So far as discipline de- 



CHARACTER. 395 

scends, Paul Jones was a rigid and strict disciplinarian. In 
his own person he appears to have been so impatient of all 
control and check as to be unfit for any regularly organized 
service, though admirably adapted to the singular crisis at 
which he appeared. To his dress he was, or at least latterly 
became, so attentive as to have it remarked. It was a better 
trait that his ship was at all times remarkable for cleanliness 
and neatness, and for the same good order and arrangement 
which pervaded all his private affairs. He is said to have 
been fond of music, and to have performed himself. 

The acute understanding of Paul Jones perpetually con- 
flicting with his natural keenness and warmth of temper, gave 
at times the appearance of vacillation to his conduct, and the 
unpleasant and unwise alternation of bold defiance with undue 
submission. This is painfully conspicuous in his unhappy and 
heart-breaking connexion with Potemkin. On other occa- 
sions, as on the sailing of Landais in the mutiny, he showed 
a remarkable degree of self-command and forbearance. The 
self-eulogium which so frequently obtrudes itself in his writ- 
ing, was, it should be recollected, generally called forth by 
peculiar circumstances. A man has every right to bring 
forward his services, when those who should remember 
appear disposed to forget them. Besides, what is here con- 
centrated into one small volume, was in reality diffused over 
the correspondence of twenty years of an active life. Boast- 
ing, for some reason which we leave to philosophy to inves- 
tigate, appears an inherent quality in great naval command- 
ers. Nelson, Rodney, Drake, were all, in one sense, arrant 
braggarts. 

It is a less amiable trait in the character of Paul Jones, 
that we find him very frequently quarrelling with rival and 
associate commanders, and never once bestowing hearty 
cordial praise on any one of them. His avarice of fame, like 
the same vice of a more sordid kind, not only gave him the 
insatiable desire of accumulation, but tempted him, if not to 



306 



CHARACTER. 



defraud, at least to trench on the rights of others ; and hh 
nostility, though open, was often far from generous : yet his 
squabbles were wholly professional. In private life there 
appears to have been no reason to fasten on him the odious 
imputation of being quarrelsome, which some have attempted. 
He was fonder, not of glory alone, but of its trappings and 
badges, than quite became the champion of a republic, and 
the pupil of Franklin ; but this is a mere subject of opinion. 
He may have considered these symbols as the seals with 
which Fame ratifies her bonds. 

The moral character of Paul Jones, at all stages of his 
career, has been in England the subject of violent abuse and 
of gross misrepresentation. If this has been done by English- 
men from a mistaken love of their country, they dishonour, 
their country and themselves. If it is, as we hope, to be at- 
tributed to ignorance of facts, such statements should hence- 
forth cease. His failings were precisely such as he must 
have been a moral monster to have escaped ; they arose from 
his natural character and from his profession : — it is the ut- 
most malice could say, and more than is warranted by truth, 
that he was 

" Jealous in honour ; sudden and quick in quarrel : 

Seeking the bubble reputation 

Even in the cannon's mouth." 




THE END. 



APPENDIX 

{Page 29.) 



"On board of that ship, before Philadelphia, Mr. Jones hoisted the flag 
of America with his own hands, the first time it was ever displayed." 

With respect to this claim so often made on behalf of Admiral Paul 
Jones, the American editor ventures to publish the following very curi- 
ous correspondence. It consists of a letter from the late President John 
Adams to the Hon. John Langdon, Governor of New Hampshire, and the 
governor's answer. For these documents the editor is indebted to the 
politeness of Dr. Elwyn of Philadelphia, a grandson of Governor Langdon. 

" Quincy, January 24, 1813. 
" Dear Sir, — I feel an irresistible propensity to compare notes with 
you, in order to ascertain whether your memory and mine coincide in tne 
recollection of the circumstances of a particular transaction in the history 
of this country. As it lies in my mind, Captain John Manly applied to 
General Washington, in Cambridge, in 1775, informed him that British 
transports and merchant ships were frequently passing and repassing un- 
armed, and asked leave to put a few guns aboard a vessel to cruise for 
them. Washington either shrinking from the boldness of the enterprise, 
or doubting his authority, prudently transmitted the information to Con- 
gress in a letter. When the letter was read, many members seemed 
much surprised ; but a motion was made, and seconded, to commit it to a 
special committee. Opposition was made to this motion, and a debate 
ensued ; out the motion prevailed by a small majority. The committee 
appointed were John Langdon, Silas Deane, and John Adams. We met and 
at once agreed to report a resolution authorizing General Washington to 
34 (397) 



399 APPENDIX. 

fit and arm one or more vessels for the purpose. A more animated op- 
position and debate arose upon this report, but the resolution was carried 
by a small majority. Under the authority of this resolution, Washington 
fitted out Manly, who soon brought in several prizes, the most important 
of which was that transport loaded with soldiers, arms, ammunition, and 
that immortal mortar, which was called the Congress, and finally drove 
the British army out of Boston and their fleet out of the harbour. This 
splendid success inspired new courage into Congress. They appointed 
a new committee, consisting of yourself, Governor Hopkins, Richard 
Henry Lee, Mr. Gadsden and me, to purchase, arm, and equip, officer 
and man ships. We met every night, and in a short time, had the Al- 
fred, Columbus, Cabot, Andrew Doria, Providence, &c, at sea, under 
Commodore Hopkins. The naval enterprise of Congress increased fast. 
They soon appointed a committee of one from each state, of whom you 
were one, and ordered twelve frigates to be built. My recollection has 
been incited by late information from Philadelphia, that Paul Jones has 
written in his Journal, ' My hand first hoisted the American Flag ;' and 
that Captain Barry used to say, that the ' first British flag struck to him.' 
Both these vain boasts I know to be false ; and as you know them to be 
so, I wish to have your testimony to corroborate mine. 

" It is not decent nor just that those emigrant foreigners of the South, 
should falsely arrogate to themselves merit that belongs to New England 
sai T ors, officers and men. 

" Wishing you a healthy pleasant year, 

" I remain your obedient friend, 

" JOHN ADAMS. 
" John Langdon, Esq., 

" Late Governor of New Hampshire, Portsmouth" 

" Portsmouth, January 27th, 1813. 
" Respected Sir, — I had the honour of receiving by the last mail, 
your letter of the 24th instant, by which I see your time is taken up, and 
your mind continually on the stretch, for the support and honour of our 
Deioved country. You request me to call to mind * the circumstances of 
a particular transaction in the history of this country;' to which I an- 
swer, tnat upon reading your correct statement of the proceedings of 
Congress on our naval matters, the appointment of committees, of which 
we were a part, the struggle we had to begin our little navy, and the 
opposition that was made by many members of Congress, brings to my 
recollection the circumstances that took place in 1775, in all which, as far 



APPENDIX. 



899 



as I can recollect, I most perfectly coincide with you. The appointment 
of Manly, and his successes, must be well known throughout the United 
States. As to Paul Jones, if my memory serves me, pretending 1 to say 
that ' his hand first hoisted the American Flag,' and Captain Barry, ' the 
first British flag struck to him,' are both unfounded, as it is impressed on 
my mind that many prizes were brought into the New England States, 
before their names were mentioned. I am, dear sir, always happy to 
hear from you, that you are in good health, and able still to continue your 
pre-eminent services to your country. Mrs. Langdon, who, I am sorry to 
say, has been very unwell for sometime past, joins me in our most sincere 
respects to yourself and your good lady, whom we have in grateful re- 
membrance. 

" That your last days may be your best and happiest, is the wish of 
vour old friend and humble servant, 

"JOHN LANGDON. 
u Honourable John Adams, 

"Late President, &c.' 




Jones saving the Boats. — (P. 254.) 



